Reconstructing ice dynamics in the central sector of the last British-Irish Ice Sheet

• Main Author: LIVINGSTONE, STEPHEN,JOHN
• Format: Thesis
• Language: unknown
• Published: 2010
• Subjects: British-Irish Ice Sheet; ice sheet dynamics; sedimentology; geomorphological mapping; Ice Sheet; Sea ice
• Online Access: http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/195/; http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/195/1/THESIS.pdf

The central sector (NW England and Scottish borders) of the last British-Irish Ice Sheet exhibits a palimpsest glacial geological and geomorphological signature characteristic of multi-phase ice flow and ice-marginal fluctuations. Despite its influential position at the heart of the British-Irish Ice Sheet, sourced from major ice dispersal centres of the northern Pennines, Lake District and Southern Uplands, and drained via fast-flowing outlets such as the Irish Sea Ice Stream, the region remains poorly constrained, both temporally and in terms of ice-flow dynamics. The principle goal of this thesis was therefore to reconstruct the palaeoglaciology of the central sector of the British-Irish Ice Sheet during the last glacial cycle, focusing on: (1) ice-flow dynamics with respect to palaeo-ice divides, ice-dispersal centres, flow trajectories and flow phasing; (2) the relative chronology of ice flows during advance and decay of the ice sheet; and (3) evidence for ice stream activity either within or sourced from the study area. The thesis adopted a dual approach involving both geomorphological mapping and sedimentological analysis. A 5 m resolution NEXTMap DEM was used to map over 9,000 individual landforms including subglacial lineations, hummocky terrain, moraines, meltwater channels, eskers and glaciofluvial sediment accumulations. Subglacial lineations were subdivided into discrete flow sets demarcating distinctive flow phases, and a relative chronology produced from cross-cutting relationships. Thirteen field sites, concentrated in the Solway Lowlands, supported by data collected from over 200 boreholes enabled detailed stratigraphic and sedimentological analysis to be carried out. This included stratigraphic logging, the collection of macrofabrics, particle size and geochemistry analysis on till matrixes, clast lithological counts, varve analysis and microstructural (thin sections) data. Results from this study have demonstrated that the central sector of the ice sheet was characterised by repeated ice-flow ...