Northgrippian

Northgrippian
0.0082 – 0.0042 Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N ↓
Chronology
−11000 — – — – −10000 — – — – −9000 — – — – −8000 — – — – −7000 — – — – −6000 — – — – −5000 — – — – −4000 — – — – −3000 — – — – −2000 — – — – −1000 — – — – 0 — – — – 1000 — – — – 2000 — Cenozoic Quaternary Late Pleistocene Holocene Greenlandian Northgrippian Meghalayan ← Year 0 ← 8.2 kiloyear event ← 4.2 kiloyear event ← Y2K Subdivision of the Holocene according to the ICS, as of 2024. [1] Vertical axis scale: Gregorian years
Etymology
Name formality	Formal
Name ratified	14 June 2018 [2]
Usage information
Celestial body	Earth
Regional usage	Global (ICS)
Time scale(s) used	ICS Time Scale
Definition
Chronological unit	Age
Stratigraphic unit	Stage
Time span formality	Formal
Lower boundary definition	8.2 kiloyear event
Lower boundary GSSP	NGRIP1 ice core, Greenland 75°06′00″N42°19′12″W / 75.1000°N 42.3200°W / 75.1000; -42.3200
Lower GSSP ratified	14 June 2018 [2]
Upper boundary definition	4.2 kiloyear event
Upper boundary GSSP	Mawmluh Cave, Meghalaya, India 25°15′44″N91°42′54″E / 25.2622°N 91.7150°E / 25.2622; 91.7150
Upper GSSP ratified	14 June 2018 [2]

In the geologic time scale, the Northgrippian is the middle of three ages or stages of the Holocene Epoch or Series. It was officially ratified by the International Commission on Stratigraphy in June 2018, along with the earlier Greenlandian and later Meghalayan ages/stages. The age takes its name from the North Greenland Ice Core Project (NorthGRIP). The age began 8,276 BP (6326 BCE or 3854 HE), near the 8.2-kiloyear event, and goes up to the start of the Meghalayan, which began 4,200 BP (2250 BCE or 7750 HE), near the 4.2-kiloyear event. ^{[1] [3]}

Stratotype

The Global Boundary Stratotype Section and Point (GSSP) defining the base of the Northgrippian is an ice core collected by the North Greenland Ice Core Project (NorthGRIP or NGRIP), from a drill site near central Greenland, located at coordinates 75°06′N, 42°19′W. The GSSP, from drill hole NGRIP1, represents the one-time temperature drop recorded during the 8.2 kiloyear event. ^{[3] [4]}

Climate

Diagram of temperatures during the Holocene

After the relative drop in temperatures linked to the 8.2-kiloyear event, the climate warmed up again and reached the highest temperatures recorded during the Holocene. The first part of the Northgrippian thus corresponded to the Holocene climatic optimum, despite some minor fluctuations during the period. Around 2250 BC, the 4.2-kiloyear event was accompanied by a further temporary drop in temperatures, marking the end of the Northgrippian and the beginning of the Meghalayan Age.

The Holocene climatic optimum led to variations in air masses and a shift in precipitation zones compared to the present period. The extent of the polar ice caps was then at its minimum recorded during the Holocene.^{[ citation needed ]}

Paleofauna

A sketch of Megatherium americanum , the Giant Sloth.

The giant ground sloth, Megatherium americanum , weighing up to 4 tons and measuring up to 6 m in length from head to tail, was one of the largest known land mammals found in Argentina, before going extinct at around 5370 BC. Similarly, the large deer Megaloceros giganteus became extinct in the Urals and western Siberia at around 4866 BC.^{[ citation needed ]}

Prehistory

The Northgrippian was a period during which many regions of the world transitioned from a predatory economy to a production economy, based on agriculture and livestock rearing, thus marking their entry into the Stone Age's Neolithic period. Only six to eight regions of the planet are considered to have independently invented agriculture. Elsewhere, technologies and lifestyles spread gradually from the first agricultural centers. At the end of the Northgrippian, few regions of Eurasia still had a hunter-gatherer way of life.^{[ citation needed ]}

See also

• Geologic time scale
• North Greenland Ice Core Project
• 5th millennium BC
• 6th millennium BC

References

1. "International Chronostratigraphic Chart" (PDF). International Commission on Stratigraphy . December 2024. Retrieved 25 September 2025.
2. Walker, Mike; Head, Martin J.; Berkelhammer, Max; Björck, Svante; Cheng, Hai; Cwynar, Les; Fisher, David; Gkinis, Vasilios; Long, Anthony; Lowe, John; Newnham, Rewi; Rasmussen, Sune Olander; Weiss, Harvey (1 December 2018). "Formal ratification of the subdivision of the Holocene Series/ Epoch (Quaternary System/Period): two new Global Boundary Stratotype Sections and Points (GSSPs) and three new stages/subseries" (PDF). Episodes. 41 (4). Subcommission on Quaternary Stratigraphy (SQS): 213–223. doi: 10.18814/epiiugs/2018/018016 . Retrieved 28 August 2020.This proposal on behalf of the SQS has been approved by the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS) and formally ratified by the Executive Committee of the International Union of Geological Sciences (IUGS).
3. "Global Boundary Stratotype Section and Points". International Commission on Stratigraphy. Retrieved 25 September 2025.
4. Head, Martin J. (17 May 2019). "Formal subdivision of the Quaternary System/Period: Present status and future directions" . Quaternary International. 500: 32–51. Bibcode:2019QuInt.500...32H. doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2019.05.018. S2CID   182783922.