evidence: The most recent ice age peaked around 20,000 years ago and was marked by extensive glaciation and dramatic climate shifts that reshaped Earth’s oceans, landscapes, and ecosystems. A new study involving climate researchers at The University of Texas at Austin Jackson School of Geosciences suggests that this ice age may provide crucial insights into future El Niño weather events. El Niño is one of the most influential climate patterns affecting global weather. [...] El Niño is a climate phenomenon characterized by the irregular but periodic warming of sea surface temperatures in the central and eastern Pacific Ocean. This disrupts global weather patterns and can lead to extreme weather events across the world, said lead author Kaustubh Thirumalai, an assistant professor in the University of Arizona Department of Geosciences. "El Niño is a formidable force of nature – it induces droughts, floods and wildfires, disrupting marine and terrestrial ecosystems across the planet, with pervasive societal impacts across numerous sectors, from agriculture to the aviation industry," said Thirumalai, who began the research when he was a postdoctoral researcher at UTIG.