Publication Date

2014

Document Type

Dissertation/Thesis

First Advisor

Powell, Ross D.

Degree Name

M.S. (Master of Science)

Legacy Department

Department of Geology and Environmental Geosciences

LCSH

Sedimentation and deposition--Antarctica; Sediments (Geology)--Antarctica; Sedimentary geology; Geology; Geomorphology

Abstract

Sedimentation studies of polar glacimarine systems remain few relative to temperate glacimarine systems due to the problem of accessibility below ice shelves. This thesis presents a conceptual model of ice shelf sedimentation at the scale of a continental shelf, which is an update of Howat and Domack's (2003) model. This update adds scale, a third dimension, a decade of research on new geologic/glaciological processes, depositional bias', and greater specificity to their model. The shelf-scale model groups facies into deformation till, glacigenic debris flows, shelfstone mud, and diatomaceous mud. Furthermore, the model is tested and shown to be capable of replicating the facies distribution and major landforms found in two distinctly different Antarctic paleo-ice stream troughs within time constraints dictated by radiometric dating. It is hoped that ideas and techniques presented by this conceptual model will serve as a launching pad for more advanced computational models in the future, which are badly needed in order to help constrain future behavior of ice sheets in a warming world.

Comments

Advisors: Ross D. Powell.||Committee members: Justin P. Dodd; Reed Scherer.

Extent

258 pages

Language

eng

Publisher

Northern Illinois University

Rights Statement

In Copyright

Rights Statement 2

NIU theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from Huskie Commons for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without the written permission of the authors.

Media Type

Text

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