North America during the last glacial maximum (2023)

This map was originally published in French by Perrin Remounted in 2023 as part of the initiative #30DayMapChallenge. Later, he published this version in English on Reddit.

This map falls within the Würm glaciation (or Wisconsin glaciation, as it is known in America), which occurred between 110 000 and 10 000 years BC. During this period, the global temperature was between 4 °C and 5 °C below the 20th century average temperature.

Perrin Remonté's map shows the situation in North America at the height of this glaciation, when large amounts of ice accumulated at the poles and on the highest peaks.

The colours used help to compare the extent of land and ice during the glacial maximum with the present day. Light green and light blue show the extent of land and ice, respectively, during the glacial peak. Dark green and white show the extent of land and ice today.

The yellow arrows show how humans took advantage of the Beringia Bridge to travel from Asia to North America and reach the regions where they established their first settlements on the continent.

You can find more information about the initiative here. #30DayMapChallenge in what I wrote in the newsletter.

Here you can read more about lands emerged during the last glacial peak.