Anglian stage

The Anglian Stage is a term used in the British Isles to describe a time when large glaciers covered much of the land. This happened during the middle of the Pleistocene, a very cold period in Earth's history. The Anglian Stage came after the Cromerian Stage and before the Hoxnian Stage.

Scientists know about this stage because of changes they see in rocks and soil. It matches what is called Marine Isotope Stage 12, or MIS 12 for short. This stage began around 478,000 years ago and ended about 424,000 years ago. Studying these old glaciers helps us understand how Earth's climate has changed over very long times.

Description

The Anglian stage was a very cold time long ago, linked to cold periods in Europe and the Alps. It was the strongest ice age in the last two million years. During this time, ice covered parts of Britain all the way to the south, even changing the path of the River Thames.

This stage is also related to an old name used in North America, but scientists there now use a different name for this time period.