Current Abstract

January 13th, 2026 Meeting Abstract

“Rotational Dynamics, Milankovitch Cycles, and Planetary Glaciation“

Presented by: 

Rod Guice

Abstract: 

We live in a Universe where literally every object we see or know of rotates on its own and orbits something else. One of the most. counterintuitive outcomes of our Universe is the behavior of rotating objects. This same counterintuitive behavior applies to rotating objects on a planetary, stellar, or galactic scale. As early as 490 BC astronomers recognized that Earth’s rotational axis was tilted relative to the ecliptic and that the tilt remained constant throughout Earth’s orbit around the Sun. By the mid-19th century, this tilt was understood to cause Earth’s seasons.. It was also accepted based can observation that ‘massive ice sheets had covered much of Europe during the Pleistocene Epochs. However, in 1911 Dr, Milutin Milankovitch discovered that Earth’s rotation and orbit had three specific irregular characteristics that each occurred over different rime periods! He named these irregularities Obliquity, Eccentricity, and Precession, He recognized that the irregularities could change the amount of sunlight reaching Earth’s Surface and might be related to past ice ages. He then made careful and detailed rotational and orbital calculations, estimated their temperature results, ran them, back spanning the Pleistocene, and developed a complete astronomical theory of planetary glaciation. His theory predicted that there had been long periods of glaciation separated by shorter interglacial warm periods (his charts and tables are still in use today}. Starting in 1998, a multi-national Ice Core project at Vostok, Antarctica confirmed his work. Earth’s irregular rotation and orbit have indeed caused planetary glaciation in repetitive cycles, which has an immense impact on our understanding of the past and what’s to come.

Biography:

William R. “Rod” Guice is a 50-year practicing Petroleum Engineer who has been fascinated by the night skies from his earliest memories, when he laid out in the grass on summer nights at his childhood home in north Louisiana and marveled at the Stars._ After accidentally channel-surfing onto a mid-1980’s PBS episode of “Cosmos”. by Dr. Carl Sagan.. Rod began reading books on Astronomy (Or. Sagan will always be one of Rod’s heroes)! However, Rod’s real Astronomical joyride began one fall evening in 2007 when he was walking across a parking lot into a bookstore and encountered a Star-Party lb eine hosted by the Kern Astronomical Society; the telescopes were everywhere, and the Universe quickly became up-close and personal- He immediately joined the Society! 18-years later, he is a past President, Vice-President, Secretary, and Board Member of the Society. The KAS is one of the best associations in IRod’S Life! As. Dr. Sagan said, “We are a way for the Cosmos to know itself.’ AP d so, it is! Rod is a proud husband, father; and grandfatlher. He lives with his wife Rose in Bakersfield and is proud to call Kern County his home. Rod is also the founder of Veer Energy, Inc., an Oil 8, Gas Consulting Firm, and is a steadfast advocate for California’s ail 8, Gas Industry. Rod acknowledges that Earth’s climate is. function of the Solar System’s heartbeat and actively promotes the increase of our reliable energy from Fossil Fuel!