It is not possible to understand the present or future climate unless
scientists can account for the enormous and rapid cycles of glaciation
that have taken place over the last million years, and which are
expected to continue into the future. A great deal has happened in the
theory of the ice ages over the last decade, and it is now widley
accepted that ice ages are driven by changes in the Earth's orbit. The
study of ice ages is very inter-disciplinary, covering geology, physics,
glaciology, oceanography, atmospheric science, planetary orbit
calculations astrophysics and statistics.