As Earth thawed around 13,000 years ago, a mystery unfolded. Ice sheets twice today's size melted rapidly, puzzling scientists. What force could drive such swift change? Two suspects emerged: cosmic impacts and solar activity. Each theory attempts to explain the extraordinary ice loss. The scale staggers imagination - picture current glaciers doubled, then vanishing. This geological upheaval, compressed into centuries, challenges conventional wisdom. | The Randall Carlson