SPUR Project

2010 winner (18 of 19)

Sedimentological signature of over-deepened basins: evidence from Skaftafellsjokull, Iceland

Supervisor: Dr Nicholas Midgley (Environmental Science)

The latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report cites changing glacier dynamics as a key unknown in the ability to predict the potential contribution of glaciers to sea level rise. This project will involve the investigation of proglacial landforms that have developed since the Neoglacial maxima of a glacier called Skaftafellsjökull that drains from Vatnajökull. Student tasks will include using a handheld GPS (Global Positioning System) unit to set out a point grid across the Skaftafellsjökull proglacial area, collecting clast samples from the grid and analysing the surface clast population on the grid in order to quantify the proportion of the signature clasts within each area. The sedimentological signature can be used to map the presence of subglacial over-deepening at contemporary glaciers and the model can then also be used to assess processes, landforms and sediments in formerly glaciated places such as the UK. The student will produce a blog and photo-diary for NOW and deliver presentations to students on the research process.