How does one explain the periodicity of the glacial and interglacial stages of the earth?

Question

What is the periodicity of these stages?

Answer 1

It's related to the orbital cycles of the Earth (precession, axial tilt and the eccentricity of the orbit). This excerpt from Wikipedia explains it:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orbital_forcing

Orbital forcing
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Orbital forcing describes the effect on climate of slow changes in the tilt of the Earth's axis and shape of the orbit (see Milankovitch cycles). These orbital changes change the total amount of sunlight reaching the Earth by up to 25% at mid-latitudes (from 400 to 500 watts per cubic meter at latitudes of 60 degrees). In this context, the term "forcing" signifies a physical process that affects the Earth's climate.

This mechanism is believed to be responsible for the timing of the ice age cycles. A strict application of the Milankovitch theory does not allow the prediction of a "sudden" ice age (rapid being anything under a century or two), since the fastest orbital period is about 20,000 years. The timing of past glacial periods coincides very well with the predictions of the Milankovitch theory, and these effects can be calculated into the future.


Ice core data. Note length of glacial cycles averages ~100,000 years. Blue curve is temperature, green curve is CO2, and red curve is windblown glacial dust (loess). Today's date is on the left side of the graph.It is sometimes asserted that the length of the current interglacial temperature peak will be similar to the length of the preceding interglacial peak (Sangamon/Eem), and from this conclude that we might be nearing the end of this warm period. However, this conclusion may be mistaken: the lengths of previous interglacials were not particularly regular (see graphic at right). Also, Archer (2005) reports that probable future CO2 emissions may be enough to suppress the glacial cycle for the next 500 kyr.

Note in the graphic the strong 120,000 year periodicity of the cycles, and the striking asymmetry of the curves. This asymmetry is believed to result from complex interactions of feedback mechanisms. It has been observed that ice ages deepen by progressive steps, but the recovery to interglacial conditions occurs in one big step.

Orbital mechanics require that the length of the seasons be proportional to the swept areas of the seasonal quadrants, so when the eccentricity is extreme, the seasons on the far side of the orbit can be substantially longer in duration. Today, when fall and winter occur at closest approach, the earth is moving at its maximum velocity and therefore fall and winter are slightly shorter than spring and summer.

Today, summer is 4.66 days longer than winter and spring is 2.9 days longer than fall (source). As axial precession changes the place in the Earth's orbit where the solstices and equinoxes occur, winters will get longer and summers will get shorter, eventually creating conditions believed to be favorable for triggering the next ice age.

The arrangements of land masses on the Earth's surface are believed to reinforce the orbital forcing effects. Comparisons of plate tectonic continent reconstructions and paleoclimatic studies show that the Milankovitch cycles have the greatest effect during geologic eras when landmasses have been concentrated in polar regions, as is the case today. Greenland, Antarctica, and the northern portions of Europe, Asia, and North America are situated such that a minor change in solar energy will tip the balance between year-round snow/ice preservation and complete summer melting. The presence of snow and ice is a well-understood positive feedback mechanism for climate.