Collaborative Research: Modeling the Role of Obliquity and Insolation Gradients in Controlling Global Ice Volume

本研究的目的是建立一系列过程模型，以研究大气和海洋中热量和水分从低纬度到高纬度的传输及其与冰盖的相互作用。这项研究的中心论点是，地球的倾角控制着高纬度和低纬度之间的日照差，因此也控制着冰量和气候。米兰科维奇理论假定冰期周期是由北半球高纬度地区夏季的日照控制的。这种日晒是由23000年的岁差周期主导的。然而，古气候证据表明，在过去300万年中，冰量的主导时期是41000年的倾角期。这一差异代表了对古气候学科学认识上的一个重大差距。验证日照梯度假说将极大地促进我们对地球过去气候历史的理解。由于目前还没有气候模型能够成功地再现冰河时代的记录，在验证这一假设过程中获得的知识也将为构建预测未来气候变化的更可靠的气候模型指明道路。资金主要用于支持一名研究生，该研究生将作为博士研究项目的一部分进行拟议的研究。

The goal of this research is to construct a series of process models to examine the transport of heat and moisture from low to high latitudes in the atmosphere and oceans and their interactions with ice sheets. The central thesis of the research is that the Earth's obliquity controls the differential of insolation between high and low latitudes and, hence, ice volume and climate. Milankovitch theory postulates that ice-age cycles are controlled by insolation in high northern latitudes in summer. This insolation is dominated by the 23,000-year period of the precession cycle. Paleoclimate evidence, however, indicates that the dominant period in ice volume over the last three million years is the 41,000-year period of obliquity. This discrepancy represents a crucial gap in understanding in the science of paleoclimatology.Validating the insolation gradient hypothesis would greatly advance our understanding of Earth's past climate history. Since no climate model has yet succeeded in reproducing the record of the ice ages, the knowledge gained in validating the hypothesis would also point the way towards constructing climate models with greater reliability for predicting future climate changes. Funding is primarily for the support of a graduate student who would carry out the proposed research as part of a doctoral research project.