Glacialprocessesandlandforms

Skoltbre cirque glaciers, Norway

www.swisseduc.ch/glaciers/earth_icy_planet/icons-02/07-cirque.jpg

Changingclimatesandglaciation
Changingclimatesandglaciation

Natural causes
Plate tectonics and volcanism

Solar output and variations

Ocean variability
Orbital variations

N. Ramos | Geology 11 Principles of Geology

Lecture Notes: Sedimentary Environments

Pleistoceneglaciation
Pleistocene
glaciation

Milankovitch cycles and climate

Research has shown that the 100,000-yr eccentricity cycle is the dominant
factor in the 100,000-year ice age cycles of the Quaternary glaciation over
the last few million years.

upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7e/Milankovitch_Variations.png
N. Ramos | Geology 11 Principles of Geology

Lecture Notes: Sedimentary Environments

Pleistoceneglaciation
Pleistocene
glaciation

Pleistocene ice age

Quaternary glaciation; current ice age; ice age
period of the last few million years (2.58 Ma to present) in which
permanent ice sheets were established in Antarctica and perhaps
Greenland, and fluctuating ice sheets have occurred elsewhere

Last Glacial Maximum (LGM)

refers to a period in the Earth's climate history when ice sheets were at
their maximum extension, between 26,500 and 19,00020,000 years ago,
marking the peak of the last glacial period
Last Interglacial Maximum ?

N. Ramos | Geology 11 Principles of Geology

Lecture Notes: Sedimentary Environments

Pleistoceneglaciation
Pleistocene
glaciation

Current ice age

Quaternary/Pleistocene glaciation; current ice age; ice age
Backwards
Glacial
Index
I d

Names
p
Alpine

p
N. American N. European
Great Britain S. American
Flandrian

1st

Wrm

Wisconsin

Riss-Wrm Sangamonian
2nd

Riss

Illinoian

Mindel Riss Pre-Illinoian

Mindel-Riss
Pre Illinoian
3rd 5th

7th

Mindel

Pre-Illinoian

GnzMindel

Pre-Illinoian

Gnz

Pre-Illinoian

Inter/Glacial

Period (ka)

MIS

Epoch

interglacial

present
12

Holocene

12 110

2-4
& 5a-d

interglacial

110 130

5e
(7, 9?)

glacial period

130 200

interglacial(s)

200
300/380

11

glacial period(s)

300/380
455

12

interglacial(s)

455 620

13-15

glacial period

620 680

16

Weichselian
Devensian Llanquihue glacial period
or Vistulian
Eemian
Saalian

Ipswichian

Valdivia

Wolstonian or
Santa Mara
Gipping

Holstein

Hoxnian

Elsterian

Anglian

Ro Llico

Cromerian
Menapian

N. Ramos | Geology 11 Principles of Geology

Beestonian

Caracol

Pleistocene

Lecture Notes: Sedimentary Environments

???

water frozen into the solid state: snowflakes, hail, icicles, glaciers, pack
ice, and entire polar ice caps

large masses of ice formed of compressed snow that move slowly under
their own weight; largest reservoir of freshwater on Earth

a large piece of ice from freshwater that has broken off from a snowformed glacier or ice shelf and is floating in open water

a form of precipitation within the Earth's atmosphere in the form of

crystalline water ice
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Glaciers_and_Icebergs_at_Cape_York.jpg
N. Ramos | Geology 11 Principles of Geology

Lecture Notes: Sedimentary Environments

Glacialenvironments

N. Ramos | Geology 11 Principles of Geology

Lecture Notes: Sedimentary Environments

Glacialprocesses

Glacial erosion
abrasion/scouring, plucking, ice thrusting, and glacially-induced spalling
crushing and scouring of surface rocks and bedrock as the glaciers
expand due to their accumulating weight of snow and ice

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Arranque_glaciar-en.svg
N. Ramos | Geology 11 Principles of Geology

Lecture Notes: Sedimentary Environments

Erosional features

Striations/grooves
scratches or gouges cut into bedrock by process of glacial abrasion
occur as multiple straight, parallel grooves representing the movement of
the sediment-loaded base of the glacier
Kelleys Island, USA (OH)
120 m L, 11 m W, 3 m H

Mount Rainier National Park, USA (WA)

upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/db/Glacial_grooves.
jpg

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Glacial_striation_21149.JPG

N. Ramos | Geology 11 Principles of Geology

Lecture Notes: Sedimentary Environments

Erosional landforms

Cirque/corrie
an amphitheatre-like valley head, formed at the head of a valley glacier
shape: open on the downhill side corresponding to the flatter area of the
stage, while the cupped seating section is generally steep cliff-like slopes
down
d
which
hi h ice
i and
d glaciated
l i t d debris
d b i combine
bi and
d converge
Abisko National Park, Sweden

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Glacial_Tarn_Formation_EN.svg
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Circosabisko.jpg
N. Ramos | Geology 11 Principles of Geology

Lecture Notes: Sedimentary Environments

Erosional landforms

Tarn
a mountain lake or pool, formed in a cirque excavated by a glacier
Tarn Shelf, Australia

Thornton Lake,
Lake USA (WA)

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Tarn_Shelf_Mt_Field_National_Park_
2.jpg
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Thornton_Lakes_25929.JPG

N. Ramos | Geology 11 Principles of Geology

Lecture Notes: Sedimentary Environments

Erosional landforms

Glacial horn / Pyramidal peak

a mountaintop that has been modified by the action of ice during
glaciation and frost weathering
Matterhorn, Switzerland and Italy

Mt. Kinabalu, Malaysia

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Zermatt_and_Matterhorn.jpg
N. Ramos | Geology 11 Principles of Geology

www.cohp.org/personal/southeast_asia/images/Kinabalu/IMGP
3989_50.jpg
Lecture Notes: Sedimentary Environments

Erosional landforms

Arte
French: edge or ridge
a thin, almost knife-like ridge of rock which is typically formed when two
glaciers erode parallel U-shaped valleys
Crib Goch, Wales

Garden Wall, USA (MT)

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Crib_Goch,_Snowdonia,_Wales__August_2007.jpg

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Garden_Wall.jpg

N. Ramos | Geology 11 Principles of Geology

Lecture Notes: Sedimentary Environments

Erosional landforms

U-shaped glacial valleys

a depression with predominant extent in one direction
Yosemite Valley, USA (CA)

Tracy Arm, Alaska

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:1_yosemite_valley_tunnel_view_2010
.JPG
0.tqn.com/d/christianity/1/0/z/B/U-ShapedValley640x480.jpg

N. Ramos | Geology 11 Principles of Geology

Lecture Notes: Sedimentary Environments

Glacialprocesses

Glacial deposition
glaciers retreat and leave behind their freight of crushed rock and sand
(glacial drift)

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Receding_glacier-en.svg
N. Ramos | Geology 11 Principles of Geology

Lecture Notes: Sedimentary Environments

Depositionallandforms

Moraine
any glacially formed accumulation of unconsolidated glacial debris (soil
and rock) that may have been plucked off a valley floor as a glacier
advanced or it may have fallen off the valley walls as a result of frost
wedging or landslide
Gorner Glacier, Switzerland

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Glacier.zermatt.arp.750pix.jpg
elearning.stkc.go.th/lms/html/earth_science/LOcanada3/307/i
mages/7_2.jpg
N. Ramos | Geology 11 Principles of Geology

Lecture Notes: Sedimentary Environments

lateral moraine
Vadret da Tschierva, Switzerland

ground moraine
Mlajkull, Iceland

www.swisseduc.ch/glaciers/glossary/icons/lateral-morainetschierva.jpg

terminal moraine
Bylot Island, Canada

geoinfo.amu.edu.pl/wpk/geos/geo_9/geo_images_G-15/FigG15.1.jpeg

medial moraine
Kaskawulsh Glacier, Canada

nsidc.org/glaciers/gallery/images/bylot_island_valley_large.jpg

nsidc.org/glaciers/gallery/images/bylot_island_valley_large.jpg

N. Ramos | Geology 11 Principles of Geology

Lecture Notes: Sedimentary Environments

Depositionallandforms

Moraine
any glacially formed accumulation of unconsolidated glacial debris (soil
and rock) that may have been plucked off a valley floor as a glacier
advanced or it may have fallen off the valley walls as a result of frost
wedging or landslide
recessional moraine
Garibaldi Provincial Park, British Columbia

vss.sd22.bc.ca/hpp/courses/geo12/course_material/unit5/U05L0
1/recessionalmoraine.jpg

N. Ramos | Geology 11 Principles of Geology

supraglacial moraine

www.geographysite.co.uk/pages/physical/glaciers/images/mor01.jpg

Lecture Notes: Sedimentary Environments

Depositionallandforms

Drumlin
Irish droimnn little ridge
an elongated whale-shaped hill whose long axis is parallel with the
movement of the ice

www.landforms.eu/Lothian/images/drumlin.jpg

www.technologyreview.com/blog/arxiv/files/39205/Drumlin.jpg

N. Ramos | Geology 11 Principles of Geology

Lecture Notes: Sedimentary Environments

Depositionallandforms

Esker
a long winding ridge of stratified sand and gravel that are frequently
several km long and are somewhat like railroad embankments
probably former sites of sub-glacial streams and rivers

www.dmr.nd.gov/ndgs/ndnotes/Eskers/images/esker%20formed
%20copy.jpg

www.brianwhittaker.com/Photo-of-Week/Archive/05-12-26Esker/Esker-26Dec2005-800-www-BrianWhittaker-com.jpg
N. Ramos | Geology 11 Principles of Geology

Lecture Notes: Sedimentary Environments

Depositionallandforms

Kame
an irregularly shaped hill or mound composed of sand, gravel and till that
accumulates in a depression on a retreating glacier (moulin), and is then
deposited on the land surface with further melting of the glacier
Camelback Kame Glacial Park, USA (IL)

ih1.redbubble.net/work.5564418.1.flat,550x550,075,f.camelbac
k-kame-glacial-park-richmond-illinois.jpg
www.littledippers.com/geocaching/Kame2.gif
N. Ramos | Geology 11 Principles of Geology

Lecture Notes: Sedimentary Environments

Depositionalfeatures

Glacial erratics
Latin errare
a piece of rock that differs from the size and type of rock native to the
area in which it rests
Yeager Rock, USA (WA)

Big Rock, Canada

15,000 mt

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Yeager-Rock-Erractic-PB110039.JPG
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Bigrock.jpg

N. Ramos | Geology 11 Principles of Geology

Lecture Notes: Sedimentary Environments

Depositionallandforms

Outwash fan
a fan-shaped body of sediments deposited by braided streams from a
melting glacier
usually poorly sorted due to the short distance traveled before being
deposited
Aktineq Glacier, Canada

Rendu Glacier, Alaska

pubs.usgs.gov/of/2004/1216/no/images/outwashplain1.gif

N. Ramos | Geology 11 Principles of Geology

www.prairie.illinois.edu/shilts/gallery/images/shilts-0012_hr.jpg

Lecture Notes: Sedimentary Environments

Glacialmovement

Kettle / Kettlehole / Pothole

a shallow, sediment-filled body of water formed by retreating glaciers or
draining floodwaters
result of blocks of ice calving from the front of a receding glacier and
becoming partially to wholly buried by glacial outwash
Pothole Lakes, Siberia

Isunngua highland, Greenland

64.19.142.13/upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cb/Kettl
e-glacial-lake-form-isunngua-greenland.jpg/800px-Kettle-glacial-lakeform-isunngua-greenland.jpg
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:PotholeLakes.Siberia.L7.200
10910.jpg
N. Ramos | Geology 11 Principles of Geology

Lecture Notes: Sedimentary Environments

???
A) Kettles
B) Drumlin
C) Outwash
D) Braided Stream
E) Recessional
Moraine
F) Outwash Plain
G) Esker
H) Glacial Lake
I) End Moraine

Esker
Glacial
Lake

Drumlin

Recessional moraine
Kettles

End moraine

Outwash
Outwash Plain
Braided stream

highered.mcgrawhill.com/sites/dl/free/0072402466/30425/Fig_1228.jpg

N. Ramos | Geology 11 Principles of Geology

Lecture Notes: Sedimentary Environments