GEOLOGY

Detailed explanation-1: -Second, Milankovitch cycles are just one factor that may contribute to climate change, both past and present. Even for Ice Age cycles, changes in the extent of ice sheets and atmospheric carbon dioxide have played important roles in driving the degree of temperature fluctuations over the last several million years.

Detailed explanation-2: -These changes, known as Milankovitch cycles, cause climate changes on time scales of thousands of years. They are not responsible for the rapid warming the Earth has experienced over the last 100 years.

Detailed explanation-3: -Although Milankovitch cycles have nothing to do with the current climate change, they are believed to have dictated Earth’s climate for millions of years, making the planet swing periodically between tens to hundreds of thousands-year long ice ages and warmer periods called interglacials, such as the one we live in.

Detailed explanation-4: -The Earth’s orbit At other times, the ellipse is more pronounced, so that the Earth moves closer and further away from the Sun in its orbit. When the Earth is closer to the Sun, our climate is warmer and this cycle also affects the length of the seasons.

Detailed explanation-5: -Milankovitch Theory has become an important tool in geologic practice and thought, and is sufficiently conspicuous to provide a rewarding target for criticism. The chief problem arising has to do with the prominence of a cycle near 100, 000 years, whose origin is not clear.