you should specify which ice age; there have been hundreds. As far as why, that is a great question, and I don't think anyone has the answer. Ice ages are tied pretty close with atmospheric carbon dioxide levels. Carbon dioxide, you have probably heard, is a greenhouse gas, meaning it traps heat on earth and helps warm it up. Most carbon dioxide is absorbed by the ocean, but the ocean also re-releases a good amount. When ocean water freezes, it pulls the carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere and traps it, and the earth gets a little cooler. The more ice, the more carbon dioxide trapped, the cooler the earth, the more ice, and so forth. Hope this helps.
The currently accepted theory is that ice ages are caused by changes in Earth's orbit and tilt, known as Milankovitch cycles. These cycles affect the amount of sunlight reaching different parts of the Earth, leading to fluctuations in temperature and the growth and retreat of ice sheets. Other factors, such as volcanic activity and variations in greenhouse gas concentrations, can also influence the climate and contribute to the onset of ice ages.
Earth's Precession
Earth's ice ages are primarily thought to be caused by variations in the Earth's orbit and tilt, known as Milankovitch cycles. These cycles affect the amount and distribution of sunlight reaching the Earth, leading to fluctuations in global temperatures and the growth or retreat of ice sheets. Additional factors such as changes in greenhouse gas concentrations and volcanic activity can also influence the onset and duration of ice ages.
Earth's precession
Ice ages are long periods of global cooling, characterized by the expansion of ice sheets and glaciers. Within ice ages, there are shorter periods called interglacial periods, which are characterized by warmer temperatures and the retreat of ice sheets. Interglacial periods occur between ice ages and are marked by relatively milder climates.
Sometimes continental drifts cause ice ages. Most of the time they are caused when ice glaciers cover parts of the Earth.
The currently accepted theory is that ice ages are caused by changes in Earth's orbit and tilt, known as Milankovitch cycles. These cycles affect the amount of sunlight reaching different parts of the Earth, leading to fluctuations in temperature and the growth and retreat of ice sheets. Other factors, such as volcanic activity and variations in greenhouse gas concentrations, can also influence the climate and contribute to the onset of ice ages.
Earth's Precession
true
Ice Ages - band - was created in 1994.
The ice age caused the area between Russia and Alaska to freeze into ice that people could walk on but the Asian hunters also followed the bison to the Americas for food
.....After.....
by ice melting
Over time, their have been many ice ages
Earth's ice ages are primarily thought to be caused by variations in the Earth's orbit and tilt, known as Milankovitch cycles. These cycles affect the amount and distribution of sunlight reaching the Earth, leading to fluctuations in global temperatures and the growth or retreat of ice sheets. Additional factors such as changes in greenhouse gas concentrations and volcanic activity can also influence the onset and duration of ice ages.
Earth's precession
Ice ages are periods of extensive glacial activity, impacting Earth's climate and geography by advancing and retreating ice sheets. During ice ages, glaciers can reshape landscapes, carve valleys, and deposit sediments, influencing the physical geography of regions they cover. Additionally, ice ages can cause sea levels to drop as water is stored in glaciers, exposing new land bridges and altering coastlines.