Lang Clodie, west coast of North Roe. Image courtesy of Tommy Mouat
Important new paper in press from the Geological Survey on the last ice sheet in the north North Sea and across Shetland
Glacial landscapes
Shetland displays many classic glacial landforms. It includes many fine examples of landforms of glacial erosion, including roche moutonnées and over-deepened valleys, now drowned by the sea. Glacial moraines, still little studied, occur on a number of valley floors. Meltwater has been a significant agent in the shaping of the detail of the landscape, forming channels
Conventionally, glacial landforms are classified according to
- origin, either formed by ice (glacial) or meltwater (glacifluvial)
- origin, either products of erosion or deposition
- position relative to the former ice, whether subglacial, englacial, supraglacial or ice marginal or in front of the ice (proglacial).
As associations or groups, the landforms create distinctive
landscapes. The extensive glacial erosion on Shetland has created classic
landscapes of areal scouring with a character that varies markedly over
different rock types.