Glacials and interglacials

Glacials are characterized by cooler and drier climates over most of the Earth and large land and sea ice masses extending outward from the poles. glaciers in otherwise unglaciated areas extend to lower elevations due to a lower Sea levels drop due to the removal of large volumes of water above sea level in the icecaps.

 There is evidence that ocean circulation patterns are disrupted by glaciations. Since the Earth has significant continental glaciation in the Arctic and Antarctic, we are currently in a glacial minimum of a glaciation. Such a period between glacial maxima is known as an interglacial.

At a meeting of the (December 17, 2008), scientists detailed evidence in support of the controversial idea that the introduction of large-scale rice agriculture in Asia, coupled with extensive deforestation in Europe began to alter world climate by pumping significant amounts of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere over the last 1,000 years. In turn, a warmer atmosphere heated the oceans making them much less efficient storehouses of carbon dioxide and reinforcing global warming, possibly forestalling the onset of a new glacial age