New maps show retreat of British ice sheets
The team, led by Professor Chris Clark, produced the maps using a combination of recent data on glacial landforms, such as moraines and drumlins – discovered using new technology such as remote sensing – with field data, some of which dated back to the 19th century. The maps record the pattern
and speed of shrinkage of the large ice sheet that covered the British Isles about 20,000 years ago. The volume of ice in the sheet was such that when it melted, it could potentially have raised global sea level by around 2.5 metres.
‘It took us more than ten years to gather all of the information in order to produce these maps, and we are delighted with the results,’ Clark said. ‘It’s great to be able to visualise the ice sheet and notice that retreat speeds up and slows down, and it’s vital, of course, that we learn exactly why. With such understanding, we will be able to better predict ice losses in Greenland and Antarctica.’
April 2011
and speed of shrinkage of the large ice sheet that covered the British Isles about 20,000 years ago. The volume of ice in the sheet was such that when it melted, it could potentially have raised global sea level by around 2.5 metres.
‘It took us more than ten years to gather all of the information in order to produce these maps, and we are delighted with the results,’ Clark said. ‘It’s great to be able to visualise the ice sheet and notice that retreat speeds up and slows down, and it’s vital, of course, that we learn exactly why. With such understanding, we will be able to better predict ice losses in Greenland and Antarctica.’
April 2011
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