Originally published in 1983, this multi-author work reviews the then current knowledge of the isotopic and temperature profiles of polar ice sheets. The polar ice sheets contain a wonderfully detailed record of the atmospheric history of the Earth that extends back for hundreds of thousands of years. This book is the result of a workshop held at the Scott Polar Research Institute, Cambridge. The review includes the glacial geology and glaciology of ice sheets; measurement and significance of glaciological parameters; temperature, isotopic and gas content profiles; and the climatic record from ice cores. The results presented in this volume will be of particular interest to glaciologists and climatologists.