5.4 Climate and Ice Ages

Lily and Zoe were studying Earth's history and came across the term "glacial period." What does this term refer to?

• A time when Earth’s climate was unusually warm

• A time when Earth’s surface was completely free of ice

• A time when large parts of Earth’s surface were covered with ice

• A time between two very cold periods

During a class discussion, Michael asked, "What does the prefix 'inter-' in 'interglacial' mean?"

• Frozen

• Between

• Under

• After

When Yuka, the baby woolly mammoth, lived, the world was in a __________.

About how long ago did the very cold period, in which Yuka lived, last until?

• 1,000 years ago

• 10,000 years ago

• 100,000 years ago

• 450,000 years ago

Currently, the Earth is in a(n) __________.

Over the last 450,000 years, Earth’s climate has __________ between glacial and interglacial periods.

• Remained stable

• Cycled or swung

• Only warmed

• Only cooled

In an interglacial period, where is permanent ice found?

• Only in the tropics

• Nowhere on Earth

• Close to the North and South Poles

• Spreading far into the temperate zones

During a field trip to study climate change, Charlotte learned that in a glacial period, the ice sheets:

• Melt away completely

• Are confined to the poles only

• Spread much further away from the poles

• Disappear from the poles entirely

During a class discussion, Sophia asked, "What defines an 'ice age'?"

• A period when Earth had no permanent ice at all.

• A cold period with repeated cycles of glacials and interglacials.

• A single brief cold event lasting a few decades.

• Any period with stable warm climates.

Mason and Mia were studying Earth's climate history and learned that there were times in the past when Earth had no permanent ice. These periods were _________.

• Interglacial periods

• Warm periods

• Ice ages

• Glacial periods