interglacial

[ in-ter-gley-shuhl ]

adjective

, Geology.

1. occurring or formed between times of glacial action.

interglacial

/ ˌɪntəˈɡleɪsɪəl; -ʃəl /

adjective

1. occurring or formed between periods of glacial action

noun

1. a period of comparatively warm climate between two glaciations, esp of the Pleistocene epoch

interglacial

/ ĭn′tər-glā′shəl /

Adjective

1. Occurring between glacial epochs.

Noun

1. A comparatively short period of warmth during an overall period of glaciation. Interglacials are characterized both by the melting of ice and by a change in vegetation.

Word History and Origins

Origin of interglacial¹

First recorded in 1865–70; inter- + glacial

Example Sentences

The objects date from the end of a warm interglacial period 300,000 years ago, about when early Neanderthals were supplanting Homo heidelbergensis, their immediate predecessors in Europe.

From New York Times

The AWG demonstrated "beyond a reasonable doubt" that the "relatively stable interglacial conditions" that existed since the start of the Holocene Epoch 11,700 years ago no longer exist because of human activity; that the changes are irreversible; that geological strata associated with these changed conditions are "distinct from Holocene strata"; and that the plutonium concentrations from the stratotype section at Crawford Lake, Canada has been confirmed by precisely similar results in strata around the world.

From Salon

In the years that followed, extensive excavations have gradually yielded numerous wooden objects from a layer dating from the end of a warm interglacial period 300,000 years ago.

From Science Daily

The thallium isotope ratios showed the global ocean lost oxygen overall during the last ice age compared to the current warmer interglacial period.

From Science Daily

Geological evidence suggests this collapse happened at least once in the past several million years—perhaps during the last interglacial.

From Science Magazine