The configuration of Northern Hemisphere ice sheets through the Quaternary.

• Published in: Nature Communications
• Main Authors: Batchelor, C.L., Margold, M., Krapp, M., Murton, D.K., Dalton, A.S., Gibbard, P.L., Stokes, C.R., Murton, J.B., Manica, A.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: unknown
• Published: Nature Publishing Group 2019
• Subjects: Ice Sheet
• Online Access: http://dro.dur.ac.uk/28761/; http://dro.dur.ac.uk/28761/1/28761.pdf; http://dro.dur.ac.uk/28761/2/28761S.pdf; http://dro.dur.ac.uk/28761/3/28761.pdf; http://dro.dur.ac.uk/28761/4/28761.pdf; https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-11601-2

Our understanding of how global climatic changes are translated into ice-sheet fluctuations and sea-level change is currently limited by a lack of knowledge of the configuration of ice sheets prior to the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). Here, we compile a synthesis of empirical data and numerical modelling results related to pre-LGM ice sheets to produce new hypotheses regarding their extent in the Northern Hemisphere (NH) at 17 time-slices that span the Quaternary. Our reconstructions illustrate pronounced ice-sheet asymmetry within the last glacial cycle and significant variations in ice-marginal positions between older glacial cycles. We find support for a significant reduction in the extent of the Laurentide Ice Sheet (LIS) during MIS 3, implying that global sea levels may have been 30–40m higher than most previous estimates. Our ice-sheet reconstructions illustrate the current state-of-the-art knowledge of pre-LGM ice sheets and provide a conceptual framework to interpret NH landscape evolution.