Rebounding from the Deep Freeze of an Ice Age

Much of the discussion on climate change centers on whether Earth has experienced recent warming and, if so, by how much and what does it mean? However, Earth has a long climate history marked by 25 ice age cycles during the last 2.5 million years. Some glacial periods have seen ice and snow coverage exceeding 24% of Earth’s surface (compared with 10% now). In those glacial cycles, temperatures were 8 to 10°C cooler than the present outside of tropical regions. Yet, each time, Earth recovered from these deep glacials and avoided a spiral toward a permanent ice state. How?

In this white paper I discuss how Earth’s orbital dynamics work together with the planet’s features—including the configuration of the continents, ocean currents, and atmospheric circulation—to avert a permanent snowball state. These features reveal exquisite design that emanates from the mind of a wise, purposeful Creator who fashioned the planet with a glacial thermostat that allows humans to thrive.