19 Ice sheets, glaciers, and landscapes, oh my!

Glaciers and ice sheets shaped the landscape of the Northeast. Ice continues to shape the landscape of alpine and polar regions. We welcome submissions on glaciers &  ice sheets of any size, shape, age, and location.

Monday, 23 March 2026
8:00 AM - 12:00 PM
CCC, Room 26

Northern Hemisphere Ice Evolution Through Pliocene Glacial-Interglacial Cycles

Paper number: 19-8
Program: Technical Sessions
Time: 10:20 AM – 10:40 AM

Authors

Abstract

Recent modeling efforts to understand future ice sheet sensitivity is partly rooted in our understanding of ice sheet behavior in past interglacials and warm periods. A past period often used as an analog of future climate change is the Pliocene Epoch. We perform idealized as well as data-constrained time-evolving ice sheet simulations across both hemispheres, to better assess ice sheet sensitivity in the overall warmth of the Pliocene, thus informing the future. It remains difficult to determine the extent and timing of Northern Hemisphere ice extent due to sparse marine and terrestrial records. Previous modeling studies have assumed Northern Hemisphere (NH) ice extent is limited to Greenland during the Pliocene,  with a volume of no more than 5-7 m sea level equivalent. These studies often do not account for long term orbital cyclicity, which influence ice volume variations in both hemispheres. Here extend established, time-continuous climate/ice-sheet modeling methodologies (previously focused on Antarctica) to the Northern Hemisphere. We simulate transient Northern Hemisphere ice evolution during the Pliocene and compare our results with geological records including ice-rafted debris and other available marine and terrestrial proxies.

Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol. 58, No. 2

doi: 10.1130/abs/2026NE-411313

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