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The Hebrides Ice Stream (HIS) and the deglaciation of the Hebrides shelf and Firth of Lorn, western Scotland, UK

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Institution:University of the Highlands and Islands

Dept/School/Faculty:Scottish Association for Marine Science

PhD Supervisor:Dr J Howe

Co-Supervisor:Prof C O’Cofaigh

Application Deadline:15 April 2013

Funding Availability: Funded PhD Project (Students Worldwide)

Western Scotland is a fundamental region in which to study the extent and timing of the growth and final disintegration of the British Ice Sheet (BIS). Numerous studies have been undertaken both onshore and offshore to decipher the morphological and sedimentological record in order to better constrain the limits and duration of the BIS. Late glacial ice sheet dynamics have been revealed to be far more rapid and responsive to climatic amelioration than had previously been considered. Notable in this debate has been the evidence that has been obtained in the inshore and, to a lesser extent, offshore on the UK continental shelf. Here new geomorphological data, principally multibeam echo sounder (MBES) data has provided imagery of previously unseen features interpreted as being glacial in origin. In particular, recent studies off western and northwestern Scotland (Stoker and Bradwell, 2005; Bradwell et al., 2008a, 2008b; Ballantyne et al., 2009; Small et al., 2011; McIntyre and Howe, 2010) have detailed new MBES data combined with radiometric and cosmogenic dating to postulate that the demise of the British Irish Ice Sheet (BIIS) was prompted by major calving events and an oscillating retreat of the Hebrides Ice Stream (HIS), the major ice stream draining ice to the south west down the Minch and towards Northern Ireland and the depocentres of the Barra and Donegal Fans (Howe et al., 2012).

The Hebrides Ice Stream from Howe et al., (2012) and location of the two principle multibeam datasets, the Sea of Hebrides to the north and the INIS Hydro surveys to the south. Piston core locations are focussed on the Sea of Hebrides.

This project aims to examine the disintegration of the BIIS and its influence on depositional environments on the Hebridean shelf and the subsequent late to post-glacial sediment fill on the west coast of Scotland. The project will aim to map offshore ice sheet limits and establish a chronology for deglaciation and the post-glacial landscape evolution over the last 15,000 years. Across the west coast of Scotland glacial influence is everywhere manifest in the present-day shape and topography of the subaerial landscape; a landscape that is even more accentuated in the marine realm.

Funding Notes:

This studentship is available for EU and International students only (UK students may not apply). The candidate may not have been resident or carried out his/her main activity in the UK for more than 12 months in the previous 36 months. Short stays, such as holidays, are not taken into account.

The successful candidate will be a full employee of SAMS. The stipend will be the Sterling equivalent of approximately €38000 p.a funded for three years.

Applicants should have, or expect to obtain, a first class or upper second-class honours degree in Environmental Geosciences or equivalent qualifications.

References:

Please submit two references with the application form.

Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) 2008 Results

Unit of Assessment: Earth Systems and Environmental Sciences    What is the RAE?
FTE Category A Staff Submitted          4*         3*         2*         1*     U/C
                      42                                                        5%     35%     45%     15%     0%


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