About the project
The subglacial hydrological system modulates ice dynamics and is a vital component in understanding how glaciers respond to climate change. Recent work has suggested that soft-bedded glacier (such as the unstable West Antarctic Ice streams) have a braided subglacial hydrology, whilst traditional models argue for a channelized hydrology.
The difference in hydrology is important as it is part of the understanding of the rate of glacier velocity and hence sea-level rise. If soft-bedded glaciers have a braided hydrology, what would this look like in terms of glacial sedimentology from both modern and Quaternary environments?
This project would investigate sites from Iceland and UK Quaternary sites to develop a model of subglacial braided system sedimentology. This model will be developed in Iceland and the UK using a variety of techniques These will be tested by using a variety of techniques including the use of ‘Planet Lab’ images and UAV survey to carry out offset (or intensity) tracking, a well-established method for deriving displacements from repeat imagery to calculate velocity, to map the glacial geomorphology, as well as sedimentological logging.
For full project details visit the Inspire project page.
Supervisors
- Professor Jane Hart (University of Southampton)
- Dr Gareth Roberts (University of Southampton)
- Dr Chris Lloyd (University of Southampton)
