Rebounding from an Ice Age

Earth has undergone approximately 25 ice age cycles over the last several million years, with 85 to 90% of that time spent in conditions much colder than the present warm period. Yet, every cold glacial period thus far has ended with a warm “interglacial” period similar to the present global climate. But why does this happen? What allows an Earth with a much higher percentage of ice and snow cover to recover from cold temperatures associated with the deep glacial periods of our recent past?

Links and Resources:

• The Last Glacial Termination
• The Relative Contribution of Orbital Forcing and Greenhouse Gases to the North American Deglaciation
• GRIP Deuterium Excess Reveals Rapid and Orbital-Scale Changes in Greenland Moisture Origin
•  The Timing of Major Climate Terminations
• In and Out of Glacial Extremes by way of Dust-Climate Feedbacks
• Glacial-Interglacial Changes in Ocean Surface Conditions in the Southern Hemisphere
• Climate of the Past, Present, and Future: A Scientific Debate, 2nd ed.