<p>As I understand it, the Pleistocene ice ages were dictated by three major factors suggested by the Serbian geophysicist Milutin Milankovitch--eccentricity (orbital shape), obliquity (axial tilt) and precession (direction of rotation in relation to fixed stars).</p>

<p>The one identical factor between our Earth and this alternate Earth is the eccentricity--no lower than 0.000055 and no higher than 0.0679 over a period of 100,000 years.</p>

<p>Back home, Earth's axial tilt varies between 22.1 and 24.5 degrees in a period of 41,000 years. In this alternate Earth, the tilt varies between 20 and 25 degrees in a period of 61,500 years.</p>

<p>Back home, Polaris will be the North Star for a total length of roughly 26,000 years. In this alternate Earth, Alioth in the Big Dipper will be the North Star for a total length of 46,800 years.</p>

<p>With these changes, how would Earth's climate been different? How would these changes affect the extents of the ice ages?</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-12-16T03:25:14.783Z
I think this question belongs in http://worldbuilding.stackexchange.com/
arkaia
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-12-16T03:52:13.817Z
It's been dismissed as broad.
JohnWDailey
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-12-16T14:50:28.023Z
Maybe instead of changing sites, you could try to rephrase the question in a more specific way. Good luck
arkaia
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-12-16T15:23:07.417Z
Rephrase it how?
JohnWDailey
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-12-16T15:27:36.970Z
Ask about the specific effects you are looking for. There are many aspects to planetary climate and being specific in the effects you are considering, shows you have done some of the leg work.
arkaia
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-12-16T18:07:46.940Z
I'm looking at the whole planet--no continental bias.
JohnWDailey
<climate><ice-age><earth-rotation><milankovitch-cycles><world-building>
Altering the Milankovitch Cycles
JohnWDailey
# Altering the Milankovitch Cycles

(Asked by: username_0 on 2015-12-15)

As I understand it, the Pleistocene ice ages were dictated by three major factors suggested by the Serbian geophysicist Milutin Milankovitch--eccentricity (orbital shape), obliquity (axial tilt) and precession (direction of rotation in relation to fixed stars).

The one identical factor between our Earth and this alternate Earth is the eccentricity--no lower than 0.000055 and no higher than 0.0679 over a period of 100,000 years.

Back home, Earth's axial tilt varies between 22.1 and 24.5 degrees in a period of 41,000 years. In this alternate Earth, the tilt varies between 20 and 25 degrees in a period of 61,500 years.

Back home, Polaris will be the North Star for a total length of roughly 26,000 years. In this alternate Earth, Alioth in the Big Dipper will be the North Star for a total length of 46,800 years.

With these changes, how would Earth's climate been different? How would these changes affect the extents of the ice ages?

**Tags:** climate, ice-age, earth-rotation, milankovitch-cycles, world-building

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: I think this question belongs in http://worldbuilding.stackexchange.com/  
> **username_0**: It's been dismissed as broad.  
> **username_1**: Maybe instead of changing sites, you could try to rephrase the question in a more specific way. Good luck  
> **username_0**: Rephrase it how?  
> **username_1**: Ask about the specific effects you are looking for. There are many aspects to planetary climate and being specific in the effects you are considering, shows you have done some of the leg work.  
> **username_0**: I'm looking at the whole planet--no continental bias.  

---

## 0 answers

