How is the Holocene Epoch divided into ages?

The Holocene Epoch, which began approximately 11,700 years ago following the last ice age, is formally divided into three distinct geological ages based on global climate shifts. In 2018, the International Union of Geological Sciences officially recognized the Greenlandian, Northgrippian, and Meghalayan ages. These subdivisions mark key climatic transitions, ranging from post-glacial warming to abrupt cooling and severe global drought.

What we know

• In July 2018, the International Union of Geological Sciences officially split the Holocene Epoch into three climatic ages: the Greenlandian, Northgrippian, and Meghalayan. [4]
• The Greenlandian Age spans from 11,700 to 8,200 years ago and was defined by warming following the end of the last ice age. [4]
• The Northgrippian Age spans from 8,200 to 4,200 years ago and was marked by severe cooling caused by glacial meltwater disrupting ocean circulation. [4]
• The current geological age, the Meghalayan, began 4,200 years ago following a mega-drought that persisted for about two centuries. [4]
• A proposed third Quaternary epoch, the Anthropocene, was officially rejected by the International Union of Geological Sciences in 2024. [2]

Still open

• The relative roles of climate change versus human hunting in causing late Quaternary megafauna extinctions remain a subject of ongoing debate.

Where to go next

• the bigger pictureWhat defines the broader Quaternary Period?
• a case in pointWhat triggered the start of the Meghalayan Age?
• how it workedHow do glacial floods disrupt ocean circulations?
• compared withHow does the Holocene differ from the Pleistocene?
• whenWhen did the Last Glacial Maximum occur?
• an unexpected connectionHow did melting ice cause global cooling?Rapid melting of ice sheets poured vast amounts of freshwater into the oceans, disrupting circulation currents and plunging the planet into the cool Northgrippian Age.

Sources

• [1]Quaternary (Wikidata Q26185) · CC0 1.0
• [2]Quaternary · CC BY-SA 4.0
• [3]Calabrian stage · CC BY-SA 4.0
• [4]Holocene · CC BY-SA 4.0
• [5]Late Pleistocene · CC BY-SA 4.0