Landsystem analysis of three outlet glaciers, southeast Iceland
Landsystem analysis is a commonly applied methodology which focuses on process-form relationships when applied in glacial environments. It can be used to understand and recreate the geomorphological evolution of glacial deposits from modern and ancient sediments. The purpose of this study is to exam...
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ftmcmaster:oai:macsphere.mcmaster.ca:11375/20606 2023-05-15T16:21:41+02:00 Landsystem analysis of three outlet glaciers, southeast Iceland Lee, Rebecca E. Maclachlan, John C. Eyles, Carolyn H. Earth Sciences 2016 http://hdl.handle.net/11375/20606 en eng http://hdl.handle.net/11375/20606 Glacial Geomorphology Glacial Sedimentology Landsystem Analyis Thesis 2016 ftmcmaster 2022-03-22T21:14:02Z Landsystem analysis is a commonly applied methodology which focuses on process-form relationships when applied in glacial environments. It can be used to understand and recreate the geomorphological evolution of glacial deposits from modern and ancient sediments. The purpose of this study is to examine the forefields of three closely located outlet glaciers of the Vatnajökull Ice Cap in southeast Iceland to determine the factors affecting the landsystems of these glaciers. A combination of digital based methods and field work focusing on geomorphology and sedimentology were used to define the landsystems. A classification code and associated symbology was used in this study to create consistency of landsystem analysis and can be used in future similar studies of glacial environments. The three glaciers, Morsárjökull, Skaftafellsjökull and Svínafellsjökull were chosen due to their shared source and close proximity, lying within adjacent valleys. The historical changes of the three glaciers have been well documented with aerial photographs, historical maps and glacier margin measurements. LiDAR were used to interpolate 2 m digital elevation models (DEM) of the three glacier forefields. These glaciers have varying topography, bedrock type and ice distribution (hypsometry, equilibrium line altitude (ELA)) which impacts the deposition at the glacier margin. The forefields of Morsárjökull and Skaftafellsjökull exhibit many similarities in the distribution and scale of landforms similar to the characteristics of the established active temperate landsystem commonly found in Iceland. However, the forefield of Svínafellsjökull has many differences compared to Skaftafellsjökull and Morsárjökull in the scale, type and distribution of landforms and sediments. Bedrock type, hypsometry and glacial debris content are major factors that influence differences in these landsystems. These three forefields may be used as analogues to enhance understanding of paleoenvironmental conditions that existed along the southern margin of Pleistocene glaciers that covered much of northern North America and Europe in the past. Thesis Master of Science (MSc) Thesis glacier Ice cap Iceland Vatnajökull MacSphere (McMaster University) Ela ENVELOPE(9.642,9.642,63.170,63.170) Vatnajökull ENVELOPE(-16.823,-16.823,64.420,64.420) Skaftafellsjökull ENVELOPE(-16.881,-16.881,64.063,64.063) Morsárjökull ENVELOPE(-16.904,-16.904,64.095,64.095) Svínafellsjökull ENVELOPE(-16.823,-16.823,64.021,64.021) |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
MacSphere (McMaster University) |
op_collection_id |
ftmcmaster |
language |
English |
topic |
Glacial Geomorphology Glacial Sedimentology Landsystem Analyis |
spellingShingle |
Glacial Geomorphology Glacial Sedimentology Landsystem Analyis Lee, Rebecca E. Landsystem analysis of three outlet glaciers, southeast Iceland |
topic_facet |
Glacial Geomorphology Glacial Sedimentology Landsystem Analyis |
description |
Landsystem analysis is a commonly applied methodology which focuses on process-form relationships when applied in glacial environments. It can be used to understand and recreate the geomorphological evolution of glacial deposits from modern and ancient sediments. The purpose of this study is to examine the forefields of three closely located outlet glaciers of the Vatnajökull Ice Cap in southeast Iceland to determine the factors affecting the landsystems of these glaciers. A combination of digital based methods and field work focusing on geomorphology and sedimentology were used to define the landsystems. A classification code and associated symbology was used in this study to create consistency of landsystem analysis and can be used in future similar studies of glacial environments. The three glaciers, Morsárjökull, Skaftafellsjökull and Svínafellsjökull were chosen due to their shared source and close proximity, lying within adjacent valleys. The historical changes of the three glaciers have been well documented with aerial photographs, historical maps and glacier margin measurements. LiDAR were used to interpolate 2 m digital elevation models (DEM) of the three glacier forefields. These glaciers have varying topography, bedrock type and ice distribution (hypsometry, equilibrium line altitude (ELA)) which impacts the deposition at the glacier margin. The forefields of Morsárjökull and Skaftafellsjökull exhibit many similarities in the distribution and scale of landforms similar to the characteristics of the established active temperate landsystem commonly found in Iceland. However, the forefield of Svínafellsjökull has many differences compared to Skaftafellsjökull and Morsárjökull in the scale, type and distribution of landforms and sediments. Bedrock type, hypsometry and glacial debris content are major factors that influence differences in these landsystems. These three forefields may be used as analogues to enhance understanding of paleoenvironmental conditions that existed along the southern margin of Pleistocene glaciers that covered much of northern North America and Europe in the past. Thesis Master of Science (MSc) |
author2 |
Maclachlan, John C. Eyles, Carolyn H. Earth Sciences |
format |
Thesis |
author |
Lee, Rebecca E. |
author_facet |
Lee, Rebecca E. |
author_sort |
Lee, Rebecca E. |
title |
Landsystem analysis of three outlet glaciers, southeast Iceland |
title_short |
Landsystem analysis of three outlet glaciers, southeast Iceland |
title_full |
Landsystem analysis of three outlet glaciers, southeast Iceland |
title_fullStr |
Landsystem analysis of three outlet glaciers, southeast Iceland |
title_full_unstemmed |
Landsystem analysis of three outlet glaciers, southeast Iceland |
title_sort |
landsystem analysis of three outlet glaciers, southeast iceland |
publishDate |
2016 |
url |
http://hdl.handle.net/11375/20606 |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(9.642,9.642,63.170,63.170) ENVELOPE(-16.823,-16.823,64.420,64.420) ENVELOPE(-16.881,-16.881,64.063,64.063) ENVELOPE(-16.904,-16.904,64.095,64.095) ENVELOPE(-16.823,-16.823,64.021,64.021) |
geographic |
Ela Vatnajökull Skaftafellsjökull Morsárjökull Svínafellsjökull |
geographic_facet |
Ela Vatnajökull Skaftafellsjökull Morsárjökull Svínafellsjökull |
genre |
glacier Ice cap Iceland Vatnajökull |
genre_facet |
glacier Ice cap Iceland Vatnajökull |
op_relation |
http://hdl.handle.net/11375/20606 |
_version_ |
1766009674256089088 |