Danoff
Premium
- 34,431
- Mile High City
Actually we may be in one right now. I don't know how many of you knew this but we're currently in an Ice Epoch!
Here's a quote
"We are currently beyond the expected end-point of an interglacial period that began more than 10,000 years ago. We are thus at a point on the paleoclimatic timetable where the onset of a new 100,000-year ice age is expected and may even be already in progress. The global climate has been generally cooling over the past 6,000 to 8,000 years,"
http://members.tripod.com/~american_almanac/hecht1.htm#f1
We're in what is called an interglacial period - a warm spot between Ice ages.
This interglacial period started roughly 13,000 years ago (that's 7000 years before some people think the Earth was created). Interglacial periods last between 10,000 and 15,000 years - which means we're right at the point where ours should end.
I've actually read that scientists think interglacial periods can end really quickly. They've found Wolly Mammoth remains preserved in Ice fairly well - meaning that at one point it was hanging around during the summer doing it's thing and as winter set in it got trapped and froze. But the thing is, if it had thawed again the next summer, the mammoth remains would have decayed. Which means that scientists think it occured at the end of an interglacial period and the temperature dropped that much over ONE WINTER!!!
So this could be it. This could be the last summer before the Ice Age sets back in. How freaking cool is that?
Here's a quote
"We are currently beyond the expected end-point of an interglacial period that began more than 10,000 years ago. We are thus at a point on the paleoclimatic timetable where the onset of a new 100,000-year ice age is expected and may even be already in progress. The global climate has been generally cooling over the past 6,000 to 8,000 years,"
http://members.tripod.com/~american_almanac/hecht1.htm#f1
We're in what is called an interglacial period - a warm spot between Ice ages.
This interglacial period started roughly 13,000 years ago (that's 7000 years before some people think the Earth was created). Interglacial periods last between 10,000 and 15,000 years - which means we're right at the point where ours should end.
I've actually read that scientists think interglacial periods can end really quickly. They've found Wolly Mammoth remains preserved in Ice fairly well - meaning that at one point it was hanging around during the summer doing it's thing and as winter set in it got trapped and froze. But the thing is, if it had thawed again the next summer, the mammoth remains would have decayed. Which means that scientists think it occured at the end of an interglacial period and the temperature dropped that much over ONE WINTER!!!
So this could be it. This could be the last summer before the Ice Age sets back in. How freaking cool is that?