Glacial period

A glacial period (alternatively glacial or glaciation) is an interval of time (thousands of years) within an
ice age that is marked by colder temperatures and glacier advances. Interglacials, on the other hand, are
periods of warmer climate between glacial periods. The Last Glacial Period ended about 15,000 years
ago.[1] The Holocene is the current interglacial. A time with no glaciers on Earth is considered a
greenhouse climate state.[2][3][4]

Quaternary Period
Within the Quaternary, which started about 2.6
million years before present, there have been a
number of glacials and interglacials.[5] At least
eight glacial cycles have occurred in the last
740,000 years alone.[6]

Penultimate Glacial Period

The Penultimate Glacial Period (PGP) is the glacial
period that occurred before the Last Glacial Period.
It began about 194,000 years ago and ended
135,000 years ago, with the beginning of the Glacial and interglacial cycles as represented by
Eemian interglacial.[7] atmospheric CO2, measured from ice core samples
going back 800,000 years. The stage names are part
of the North American and the European Alpine
Last Glacial Period subdivisions. The correlation between both
subdivisions is tentative.
The last glacial period was the most recent glacial
period within the Quaternary glaciation. It occurred
in the Pleistocene, which began about 110,000 years ago and ended about 15,000 years ago.[1] The
glaciations that occurred during the glacial period covered many areas of the Northern Hemisphere and
have different names, depending on their geographic distributions: Wisconsin (in North America),
Devensian (in Great Britain), Midlandian (in Ireland), Würm (in the Alps), Weichsel (in northern Central
Europe), Dali (in East China), Beiye (in North China), Taibai (in Shaanxi) Luoji Shan (in southwest
Sichuan), Zagunao (in northwest Sichuan), Tianchi (in the Tian Shan) Jomolungma (in the Himalayas),
and Llanquihue (in Chile). The glacial advance reached the Last Glacial Maximum about 26,500 BP. In
Europe, the ice sheet reached Northern Germany. Over the last 650,000 years, there have been on average
seven cycles of glacial advance and retreat.

Next glacial period

Since orbital variations are predictable,[8] computer models that relate orbital variations to climate can
predict future climate possibilities. Work by Berger and Loutre suggests that the current warm climate may
last another 50,000 years.[9] The amount of heat trapping (greenhouse) gases being emitted into the Earth's
oceans and its atmosphere may delay the next glacial period by an additional 50,000 years.[10][11]

References
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Epochs" (http://www-qpg.geog.cam.ac.uk/people/gibbard/GTS2004Quat.pdf) (PDF). In
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g/10.1038%2Fnature02599). Nature. 429 (6992): 623–8. Bibcode:2004Natur.429..623A (http
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(July 2018). "Climate Dynamics During the Penultimate Glacial Period Recorded in a
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pdfs/Nehme_etal_2018_QR.pdf) (PDF). Quaternary Research. 90 (1): 10–25.
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External links

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