LAUSR

Abstract A sea level model which is normally used to calculate sea level changes during glacial-interglacial cycles is modified to solve the approximate nonlinear Liouvelle equation, in order to calculate ‘large’ true polar wander (TPW) that may be induced by ice sheet loading. The purpose is to understand when the TPW will be too large to be solved properly by the linear model, and to properly calculate the TPW induced by snowball Earth events. It is found that the relative error for TPW calculated with a linear model will be >10% when the TPW exceeds ∼2° for ice sheets that develop near the poles, but remains 10° for certain viscosity profiles of the Earth.