High-resolution reconstruction of the last ice sheet in NW Scotland

Reconstructions of the last (late Devensian) British ice sheet have hitherto been based on assumptions regarding its extent and form. Here we employ observational evidence for the maximum altitude of glacial erosion (trimlines) on mountains that protruded through the ice (palaeonunataks) to reconstruct the form of the ice sheet over ≈ 10 000 km² of NW Scotland. Contrasts in the clay mineralogy of soils and exposure ages of rock surfaces above and below these trimlines confirm that they represent the upper limit of late Devensian glacial erosion. The reconstruction yields realistic values of basal shear stress and is consistent with independent evidence of ice movement directions. The ice sheet reached ≈ 950 m altitude over the present N–S watershed, descended northwards and north-westwards, was deflected around an ice dome on Skye and an independent Outer Hebrides ice cap, and probably extended across the adjacent shelf on a bed of deforming sediments.     

Periglacial trimlines,former nunataks and the altitude of the last ice sheet in Wester Ross,northwest Scotland

High-level weathering limits separating ice-scoured topography from frost-weathered detritus were identified on 28 mountains in Wester Ross at altitudes of 700–960 m, and a further 22 peaks support evidence of ice scouring to summit level. Weathering limits are defined most clearly on sandstone and gneiss, which have resisted frost shattering during the Late Devensian Lateglacial, but can also be distinguished on schists and quartzite. Schmidt hammer measurements and analyses of clay mineral assemblages indicate significantly more advanced rock and soil weathering above the weathering limits. The persistence of gibbsite above weathering limits indicates that they represent the upper limit of Late Devensian glacial erosion. The regular decline of weathering-limit altitudes along former flowlines eliminates the possibility that the weathering limits represent former thermal boundaries between protective cold-based and erosive warm-based ice. The weathering limits are therefore interpreted as periglacial trimlines that define the maximum surface altitude of the last ice sheet. Calculated basal shear stresses of 50–95 kPa are consistent with this interpretation. Reconstruction of ice-sheet configuration indicates that the former ice-shed lay above 900 m along the present watershed, and that the ice surface descended northwestwards, with broad depressions along major troughs and localised domes around independent centres of ice dispersal. Extrapolation of the ice surface gradient and altitude suggests that the ice sheet did not overrun the Outer Hebrides, but was confluent with the independent Outer Hebrides ice-cap in the North Minch basin. Erratics located up to 140 m above the reconstructed ice surface are inferred to have been emplaced by a pre-Late Devensian ice sheet (or ice sheets) of unknown age. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The last ice sheet in Snowdonia

In Snowdonia there is a marked contrast between weathered summits, often with well‐developed blockfields or tors, and lower ice‐moulded terrain. The boundary is interpreted as a trimline marking the upper surface of the last ice sheet. This interpretation is supported by the presence of gibbsite, an end‐product of prolonged weathering, at the base of soils above but not below the trimline. The reconstructed ice surface reaches about 850 m above present sea‐level along an ice divide running NE–SW through the massif. There is no evidence to support the popular view that ice centred further south extended over Snowdonia, and breaching to form the major glacial troughs can be explained by the action of local ice. The field evidence presented here demonstrates that most models of the southern British and Irish Sea ice sheets are significantly flawed, the earliest being far too thick and the most recent far too thin. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Extent of the last ice sheet in northern Scotland tested with cosmogenic 10Be exposure ages

The extent of the last British–Irish Ice Sheet (BIIS) in northern Scotland is disputed. A restricted ice sheet model holds that at the global Last Glacial Maximum (LGM; ca. 23–19 ka) the BIIS terminated on land in northern Scotland, leaving Buchan, Caithness and the Orkney Islands ice‐free. An alternative model implies that these three areas were ice‐covered at the LGM, with the BIIS extending offshore onto the adjacent shelves. We test the two models using cosmogenic ¹⁰Be surface exposure dating of erratic boulders and glacially eroded bedrock from the three areas. Our results indicate that the last BIIS covered all of northern Scotland during the LGM, but that widespread deglaciation of Caithness and Orkney occurred prior to rapid warming at ca. 14.5 ka. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The high-level marine shell beds of Scotland and the build-up of the last Scottish ice sheet

It is argued that high-level shell beds buried by till at various localities around the Scottish coast are in situ and represent a marine transgression immediately prior to and consequent upon loading of the earth's crust by the build-up of the last Scottish ice sheet. The high-level rock platforms of the Hebrides may also have been eroded at this time. A relationship between the build-up of the last Scottish ice sheet and world sea-level is suggested and it is further argued that the Scottish ice sheet was a more sensitive indicator of the onset (and termination) of a period of northern hemispheric glaciation than either the Laurentide or Scandinavian ice sheets. It is suggested that the build-up of the last Scottish ice sheet took place in the Early Devensian and a tentative correlation is proposed between the Scottish evidence and the deep-sea evidence for glacier build-up at ca. 75,000 years B.P     

Greenland ice sheet history since the last glaciation

The position of the Inland Ice margin during the late Wisconsin-Würm glaciation (ca. 15,000 yr BP) is probably marked by offshore banks (submarine moraines?) in the Davis Strait. The history of the Inland Ice since the late Wisconsin-Würm can be divided into four principal phases: (1) Relatively slow retreat from the offshore banks occurred at an average rate of approximately 1 km/100 yr until ca. 10,000 yr BP (Younger Dryas?) when the Taserqat moraine system was formed by a readvance. (2) At ca. 9500 yr BP, the rate of retreat increased markedly to about 3 km/100 yr, and although nearly 100 km of retreat occurred by ca. 6500 yr BP, it was punctuated by frequent regional reexpansions of the Inland Ice that formed extensive moraine systems at ca. 8800-8700 yr BP (Avatdleq-Sarfartôq moraines), 8400-8100 yr BP (Angujârtorfik-Fjord moraines), 7300 yr BP (Umîvît moraines), and 7200-6500 yr BP (Keglen-Mt, Keglen moraines). (3) Between 6500 and 700 yr BP, discontinous ice-margin deposits and ice-disintegration features were formed during retreat, which may have continued until the ice margin was near or behind its present position by ca. 6000 yr BP. Most of the discontinuous ice-margin deposits occur within 5–10 km of the present ice margin, and may have been formed by two main phases of readvance at ca. 4800-4000 yr BP and 2500-2000 yr BP. (4) Since a readvance at ca. 700 yr BP, the Inland Ice margin has undergone several minor retreats and readvances resulting in deposition of numerous closely spaced moraines within about 3 km of the present ice margin. The young moraines are diffieulto to correlate regionally, but several individual moraines have the following approximate ages: A.D. 1650, 1750, and 1880–1920.Inland Ice fluctuations in West Greenland were very closely paralleled by Holocene glacial events in East Greenland and the eastern Canadian Aretic. Such similarity of glacier behavior over a large area strongly suggests that widespread climatic change was the direct cause of Holocene glacial fluctuations. Moreover, historical advances of the Inland Ice margin followed slight temperature decreases by no more than a few decades, and ¹⁸O data from Greenland ice cores show that slight temperature decreases occurred frequently throughout the Holocene. Therefore, we conclude that construction of the major Holocene moraine systems in West Greenland was caused by slight temperature decreases, which decreased rates of ablation and thereby produced practically immediate advances of the ice sheet margin, but did not necessarily affect the long-term equilibrium of the ice sheet.     

Age and extent of the Scandinavian ice sheet in northwest Russia

The last glacial maximum (LGM) of the Scandinavian ice sheet in the Arkhangelsk region has been identified morphologically as ridges and hummocks in an otherwise flat topography. Stratigraphically the limit is marked by the presence of till above Mikhulinian (last interglacial) sediments inside the ridges and by the absence of till outside the ridges. During the LGM, ice flowed into the region from the north and northwest forming a lobe in the Dvina-Vaga depression. The continuation northward, northeast of Arkhangelsk, is still somewhat uncertain, but evidence suggests that the outer margin of the Scandinavian ice sheet was situated in the Mezen drainage basin. Luminescence and radiocarbon dates suggest that the maximum position was attained after some 17 ka ago, and that deglaciation started close to 15 ka ago. This age for the maximum position is younger than the maximum position in the western peripheral areas of the Scandinavian ice sheet. This may be accounted for by initial ice build-up in the west followed by a successive migration of the ice divide(s) to the east as ice growth continued. Deglaciation was either by lateral retreat or isolation of dead ice masses causing areal downwasting.     

Late devensian ice sheet in the western Grampians,Scotland

A radial pattern of ice flow of the last ice sheet in the largest source area of ice (c. 5000 km²) in the British Isles in western Scotland is demonstrated by the dispersal of indicator erratics and by patterns of striae, friction cracks and ice-moulded landforms. Three major ice domes and the principal ice divide are identified in the western Grampians. The ice domes coincided with the highest mountain blocks while it is inferred that the alignment of many of the pre-existing valleys controlled much of the outflow of ice, forming ice streams within the ice sheet. The importance of the Rannoch Moor basin as a radial provider of ice to surrounding areas was apparently less significant than has hitherto been considered. Ice flowed into and across the southern part of the basin from the principal ice divide located to the west and south. No evidence has yet been found that would support a model of an eastward-migrating ice divide either during the build-up or during the deglaciation of the Late Devensian ice sheet.     

Palaeoglaciology of the last Irish ice sheet reconstructed from striae evidence

A database comprising some ～5200 individual striation measurements on bedrock surfaces across the island of Ireland was used to produce maps of flowsets corresponding to individual ice flow events during the last (late Devensian) glacial cycle. These flowsets were identified on the basis of regional-scale correspondence between striae orientations which, when linked together spatially, are able to identify consistent ice flow vectors. Four main chronological stages are identified on the basis of this evidence: (i) incursion of Scottish ice into Ireland; (ii) glacial maximum conditions; (iii) ice retreat and dissolution; and (iv) development of localised ice domes. Striae-based reconstructions of the glaciology of the last Irish ice sheet are qualitatively different from those based on bedform (mainly drumlin and ribbed moraine) evidence. Significant differences are apparent in upland areas which have fewer preserved bedforms and a higher concentration of striae. Combining bedform and striae datasets will enable a better understanding of the temporal evolution of the ice sheet. It is likely that both datasets record a snapshot of ice flow direction and subglacial conditions and environments immediately prior to preservation of this directional evidence.     

Devensian organic interstadial deposits and ice sheet extent in Buchan,Scotland

Pre-Late Devensian organic deposits in the Buchan area of northeast Scotland were investigated for their geomorphological and palaeoecological (pollen, plant macrofossils, coleoptera) properties. Close ecological agreement exists between fossil indicators and allows the inference that the environment in the vicinity of the deposits was a dwarf shrub tundra of the type met today in high latitude areas of Scandinavia and arctic Russia. The latest in a series of radiocarbon dates from the site produced determinations beyond the limits of the method, although the geomorphological and fossil evidence appears to point to an interstadial date within Oxygen Isotope Stages 5a or 5c. The site has special significance for arguments concerning the much-debated concept of ‘Moraineless Buchan’; indeed, evidence is presented which supports the concept of extensive ice sheet glaciation during the Late Devensian for this crucial geographical area. If Buchan is to be seen as a further casualty amongst other disputed ice-free enclaves, then a return to earlier models of extensive ice sheet glaciation in the Late Devensian of Scotland would seem to be necessary. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Pattern of deglaciation of the last (Late Devensian) Scottish ice sheet: Evidence from ice-marginal deposits in the Dee valley,Northeast Scotland

The mode of deglaciation of the last Scottish ice sheet is assessed from evidence provided by geomorphological mapping and sedimentology. Ice-marginal deposits in the Dee valley have a distinctive morphological expression and a characteristically varied sedimentology that strongly resembles those from subpolar glaciers. The deposits tend to occur in certain topographic situations which can be accounted for by compression of ice near the margin and formation of an ice-cored supraglacial land system. A series of recessional stages of the ice-front can be mapped demonstrating that active retreat occurred. However, additional evidence shows there was probably a thin marginal zone of stagnant ice. Recessional stages are inferred to be stillstands that are considered to be topographically controlled rather than related to climate. Development of the supraglacial land system during deglaciation suggests that the ice sheet had a polythermal basal regime with a cold-based margin. This implies that deglaciation took place in northeast Scotland while the climate remained cold, probably due to a precipitation deficit, which agrees well with chronostratigraphic data.     

Trimlines,blockfields and the vertical extent of the last ice sheet in southern Ireland

Trimlines separating glacially abraded lower slopes from blockfield‐covered summits on Irish mountains have traditionally been interpreted as representing the upper limit of the last ice sheet during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). Cosmogenic ¹⁰Be exposure ages obtained for samples from glacially deposited perched boulders resting on blockfield debris on the summit area of Slievenamon (721 m a.s.l.) in southern Ireland demonstrate emplacement by the last Irish Ice Sheet (IIS), implying preservation of the blockfield under cold‐based ice during the LGM, and supporting the view that trimlines throughout the British Isles represent former englacial thermal regime boundaries between a lower zone of warm‐based sliding ice and an upper zone of cold‐based ice. The youngest exposure age (22.6±1.1 or 21.0±0.9 ka, depending on the ¹⁰Be production rate employed) is statistically indistinguishable from the mean age (23.4±1.2 or 21.8±0.9 ka) obtained for two samples from ice‐abraded bedrock at high ground on Blackstairs Mountain, 51 km to the east, and with published cosmogenic ³⁶Cl ages. Collectively, these ages imply (i) early (24–21 ka) thinning of the last IIS and emergence of high ground in SE Ireland; (ii) relatively brief (1–3 ka) glacial occupation of southernmost Ireland during the LGM; (iii) decoupling of the Irish Sea Ice Stream and ice from the Irish midlands within a similar time frame; and (iv) that the southern fringe of Ireland was deglaciated before western and northern Ireland.     

Cosmogenic 10Be insights into the extent and chronology of the last deglaciation in Wester Ross,northwest Scotland

Cosmogenic ¹⁰Be surface exposure ages for bedrock sites around Torridon and the Applecross Peninsula in Wester Ross, northwest Scotland, provide new insights into the Lateglacial transition. Accounting for postglacial weathering, six statistically comparable exposure ages give a late Younger Dryas (G‐1) exposure age of 11.8 ± 1.1 ka. Two further outliers are tentative pre‐Younger Dryas exposure ages of 13.4 ± 0.5 ka in Torridon, and 17.5 ± 1.2 ka in Applecross. The Younger Dryas exposure ages have compelling implications for the deglaciation of marginal Loch Lomond Stadial ice fields in Torridon and Applecross. Firstly, they conflict with predictions of restricted ice cover and rapid retreat based on modelling experiments and climate proxies, instead fitting a model of vertically extensive and prolonged ice coverage in Wester Ross. Secondly, they indicate that >2 m of erosion took place in the upper valleys of Torridon and Applecross during the Younger Dryas, implying a dominantly warm‐based glacial regime. Finally, the exposure ages have clarified that corrie (cirque) glaciers did not readvance in Wester Ross, following final deglaciation. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Geomorphological signature and flow dynamics of The Minch palaeo‐ice stream,northwest Scotland

Large‐scale streamlined glacial landforms are identified in 11 areas of northwest Scotland, from the Isle of Skye in the south to the Butt of Lewis in the north. These ice‐directional features occur in bedrock and superficial deposits, generally below 350 m above sea level, and where best developed have elongation ratios of >20:1. Sidescan sonar and multibeam echo‐sounding data from The Minch show elongate streamlined ridges and grooves on the seabed, with elongation ratios of up to 70:1. These bedforms are interpreted as mega‐scale glacial lineations. All the features identified formed beneath The Minch palaeo‐ice stream which was ca. 200 km long, up to 50 km wide and drained ca. 15 000 km² of the northwest sector of the last British‐Irish Ice Sheet (Late Devensian Glaciation). Nine ice‐stream tributaries and palaeo‐onset zones are also identified, on the basis of geomorphological evidence. The spatial distribution and pattern of streamlined bedforms around The Minch has enabled the catchment, flow paths and basal shear stresses of the palaeo‐ice stream and its tributaries to be tentatively reconstructed. © British Geological Survey/Natural Environment Research Council copyright 2007. Reproduced with the permission of BGS/NERC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A new ice sheet model validated by remote sensing of the Greenland ice sheet

Accurate prediction of future sea level rise requires models that accurately reproduce and explain the recent observed dramatic ice sheet behaviours. This study presents a new multi-phase, multiple-rheology, scalable and extensible geofluid model of the Greenland ice sheet that shows the credential of successfully reproducing the mass loss rate derived from the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE), and the microwave remote sensed surface melt area over the past decade. Model simulated early 21st century surface ice flow compares satisfactorily with InSAR measurements. Accurate simulation of the three metrics simultaneously cannot be explained by fortunate model tuning and give us confidence in using this modelling system for projection of the future fate of Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS). Based on this fully adaptable three dimensional, thermo-mechanically coupled prognostic ice model, we examined the flow sensitivity to granular basal sliding, and further identified that this leads to a positive feedback contributing to enhanced mass loss in a future warming climate. The rheological properties of ice depend sensitively on its temperature, thus we further verified modelâ?s temperature solver against in situ observations. Driven by the NCEP/NCAR reanalysis atmospheric parameters, the ice model simulated GrIS mass loss rate compares favourably with that derived from the GRACE measurements, or about ?147 km³/yr over the 2002–2008 period. Increase of the summer maximum melt area extent (SME) is indicative of expansion of the ablation zone. The modeled SME from year 1979 to 2006 compares well with the cross-polarized gradient ratio method (XPGR) observed melt area in terms of annual variabilities. A high correlation of 0.88 is found between the two time series. In the 30-year model simulation series, the surface melt exhibited large inter-annual and decadal variability, years 2002, 2005 and 2007 being three significant recent melt episodes.     

Early growth of the last Cordilleran ice sheet deduced from glacio-isostatic depression in southwest British Columbia, Canada

Relative sea level at Vancouver, British Columbia rose from below the present datum about 30,000 cal yr B.P. to at least 18 m above sea level 28,000 cal yr B.P. In contrast, eustatic sea level in this interval was at least 85 m lower than at present. The difference in the local and eustatic sea-level positions is attributed to glacio-isostatic depression of the crust in the expanding forefield of the Cordilleran ice sheet during the initial phase of the Fraser Glaciation. Our findings suggest that about 1 km of ice was present in the northern Strait of Georgia 28,000 cal yr B.P., early during the Fraser Glaciation.     

Mass balance and sliding velocity of the Puget lobe of the cordilleran ice sheet during the last glaciation

An estimate of the sliding velocity and basal meltwater discharge of the Puget lobe of the Cordilleran ice sheet can be calculated from its reconstructed extent, altitude, and mass balance. Lobe dimensions and surface altitudes are inferred from ice limits and flow-direction indicators. Net annual mass balance and total ablation are calculated from relations empirically derived from modern maritime glaciers. An equilibrium-line altitude between 1200 and 1250 m is calculated for the maximum glacial advance (ca. 15,000 yr B.P.) during the Vashon Stade of the Fraser Glaciation. This estimate is in accord with geologic data and is insensitive to plausible variability in the parameters used in the reconstruction. Resultant sliding velocities are as much as 650 m/a at the equilibrium line, decreasing both up- and downglacier. Such velocities for an ice sheet of this size are consistent with nonsurging behavior. Average meltwater discharge increases monotonically downglacier to 3000 m³/sec at the terminus and is of a comparable magnitude to ice discharge over much of the glacier's ablation area. Palcoclimatic inferences derived from this reconstruction are consistent with previous, independently derived studies of late Pleistocene temperature and precipitation in the Pacific Northwest.     

Deformation of the Caledonide lithosphere of northwest Scotland

An interpretation of the MOIST seismic reflection profile along the north coast of Scotland has shown the pattern of deep crustal structure across the margin of the Caledonian orogen with the Hebridean cratonic foreland to the northwest. It is proposed that the lower crust of the orogen is characterised by a suite of easterly dipping thrusts that divide it into flakes that were imbricated during lateral compression of the lithosphere. The effects of concomitant and subsequent uplift and erosion led to the removal of the major part of the upper crust within the orogen so that the present crust and Moho are largely the relics of the Caledonian lower crust. As time progressed, the thrust front encroached further into the foreland and cut down to a basal décollement at successively deeper levels. This behaviour is explained as a consequence of the response of the brittle-ductile transition to changing the temperature regime, rock composition and strain rate as the orogeny proceeded. Palinspastic reconstructions of the whole lithosphere illustrate the process. Following the compressional phase of the orogeny, uplift led to initiation of extension and the reactivation of the thrusts as normal listric faults. Rotation of basement blocks gave rise to wedge-shaped sedimentary basins.