Relaxation theory of glaciation in the Northern hemisphere. Will climate warming accelerate the start of a new glacier period?

摘要

Processes of the latest glacier period and Holocene in Eurasia were considered with allowance for data on annual layer thickness in the glacier cover of Greenland during the last 17 thousand years based on the theory of periodic glaciations in the Northern hemisphere. The theory relates the onset of those cooling to the sharp changes in current patterns of the North Atlantic caused by freshening of the Arctic Ocean waters by the inflow of Northern rivers, primarily, the Siberian ones, Ob', Yenisei, and Lena. The influence of several anthropogenic factors on the time required for the onset of the current/next glacier period was analyzed. The conclusion was made that the global climate warming currently observed may shorten the time interval before the onset of a new glacier period.