Glacial Geology Spring, 2003

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Glacial GeologySpring, 2003

• Prof. W. W. Locke
• 223/224 Traphagen
• wlocke_at_montana.edu 994-6918

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So why study glacial geology?

• Uniformitarian
• Variable
• Local ? global
• Applied physics
• Modern analogs
• Processes
• Modeling

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Himalaya's Receding Glaciers Suffer Neglect (from
the Christian Science Monitor 1/3/07)

• NEW DELHI - Billions of people in China and the
  Indian subcontinent rely on South Asia's
  Himalayan glaciers - the world's largest store of
  fresh water outside the polar ice caps. The
  massive ice floes feed seven of the world's
  greatest Asian rivers in one of the world's most
  densely populated regions.
• Yet as global climate change slowly melts
  glaciers from Africa to the Andes, scientists say
  the glaciers in the Himalayas are retreating at a
  rate of about 33 to 49 feet each year - faster
  than in any other part of the world. The
  Gangotri Glacier one of India's largest, a mass
  of ice about 18 miles long is retreating at a
  rate of more than 100 feet a year.

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An Intro to Glacial Geology

• Glacial Geology as a Science
• Glaciology
• The study of ice as a material
• Glacial Geology
• The study of ice as an agent of change
• Quaternary Geology
• The study of the last 2 million years

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A History of Glacial Geology

• 1779 H. B. de Saussure erratic boulders
• 1795 J. Hutton glacial erratics
• 1821 I. Venetz-Sitten former expanded ice
• 1837 L. Agassiz a great ice period
• 1841 C. Maclaren eustatic sea level change
• 1865 T. F. Jamieson isostatic deformation
• 1871 G. K. Gilbert ice sheet moraines
• 1890 G. K. Gilbert pluvial lake Bonneville

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Further Evolution of Glacial Theory

• 1932(65) J H. Bretz the Channeled Scablands
• 1947 (-57, -70) R. F. Flint Glacial Geology
• 1952 J. F. Nye mechanics of glacier flow
• 1968 J. T. Andrews postglacial uplift, Canada
• 1968 G. S. Boulton Deformation tills
• 1969 W. S. B. Paterson The Physics of
  Glaciers
• 1981 Denton and Hughes The Last Great Ice
  Sheets

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The Elements of Glaciology

• Glaciers as a system
• Energy budget (balance?)
• Mass budget (balance?)
• Glaciers as a material
• Glacier flow
• Albedo, etc.
• Glaciers as climate indicators
• Snowlines
• Glaciation threshold, firn line, ELA

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The Elements of Glacial Geology

• Glacial Erosion
• Plucking, abrasion
• Glacial Transport
• Glacial Deposition
• Lodgment, melt-out
• Meltwater
• Proglacial Geology
• Paraglacial Geology

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Elements of Quaternary Geology

• Quaternary Stratigraphy
• Glacial events
• d18O in ocean sediments
• Pollen, foraminifera
• Ice core records
• Fossil records
• Quaternary climates
• Glacier/climate feedbacks

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Elements of This Course

• Lecture (W, F)
• Student facilitation (sign up) (10)
• PowerPoint/HTML-based
• Lab (M) (30)
• Hour Exam (15)
• Student projects/presentations (15)
• Final Exam (30)
• Field Trip

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Resources

• Syllabus
• Department
• Course Matrix
• Prof. Locke
• Glacial Geology
• Glacial Geology
• PowerPoints
• From campus in the MSU domain \\opal\glacial
• Must be registered in the course
• From off-campus set up VPN?

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What Will You Learn?

• Very little of applied value!
• Application of principles
• Context for surficial studies
• Natural Art Appreciation