Prehistoric life
The last ice age hasn't ended, the climate has just warmed up a bit causing the ice sheets to retreat. When the ice was more extensive, our climate was very different. Firstly, lots of the world's water was turned to ice, so precipitation was low: Europe received roughly half the rainfall it gets today, mostly in the summer months. Globally, summer temperatures were 4-8 Celsius colder than today. In some places, the winter temperatures were 15-20 Celsius cooler than today's, making ice age Florida more like modern Quebec. Wind speeds were higher and dust storms were common as the wind picked up material from enlarged deserts and glacier margins. The ice age was at its most extreme - and the climate at its most severe - 18,000 years ago.
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Ice age masterpieces
Lascaux has cave paintings of ice age animals like the aurochs.
Lascaux has cave paintings of ice age animals like the aurochs.
Glacial postcard
Ice age remnants tell of the glacial past when Britain was still joined to Europe.
Ice age remnants tell of the glacial past before Britain was separated from Europe. The catastrophic flood that first separated us happened between a quarter and half a million years ago, but the final break was not until 8,000 years ago. This programme was first shown in 1997.
Ice age Los Angeles
Tar pit trapped bones, bodies and botanical fragments help recreate ancient landscapes.
Tar pit trapped bones, bodies and botanical fragments help recreate ancient landscapes.
Bare bones
Deep in the bowels of a cave lies evidence that polar bears once roamed the Scottish Highlands.
Deep in the bowels of a cave lies evidence that polar bears once roamed the Scottish Highlands.
Channel crossing
When the North Sea was an ice age tundra, vast herds of animals migrated to the UK.
When the North Sea was an ice age tundra, vast herds of animals migrated to the UK.
Macrauchenia
Giant ground sloths
Glyptodonts
Dire wolf
Smilodon
Irish elk
Woolly rhinoceros
Homo erectus
Modern and early humans
Neanderthal
American mastodon
Columbian mammoth
Mammoths
Woolly mammothThe last glacial period was the most recent glacial period within the current ice age occurring during the last years of the Pleistocene, from approximately 110,000 to 10,000 years ago.
During this period there were several changes between glacier advance and retreat. The maximum extent of glaciation within this last glacial period was approximately 22,000 years ago. While the general pattern of global cooling and glacier advance was similar, local differences in the development of glacier advance and retreat makes it difficult to compare the details from continent to continent (see picture of ice core data below for differences).
From the point of view of human archaeology, it falls in the Paleolithic and Mesolithic periods.
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Haast's eagle
Moas
Synapsids
Cryogenian period
Carboniferous period
Permian period
Pleistocene epoch