TEACHING GLACIAL GEOMORPHOLOGY IN THE FIELD: LINKING FIELDWORK TO GLOBAL-SCALE SCIENTIFIC QUESTIONS

Glacial geomorphology is a component that is rarely included in traditional geology field courses. Given the natural links that exist between glacial geology and rapid climate change, this is a lost opportunity to relate outcrop-scale fieldwork to a contemporary, global-scale problem.

Over the past several years we have developed a glacial mapping project in the Connemara region of western Ireland as part of the James Madison University (formerly Boston University) field course. Besides being an introduction to geomorphic mapping and surface process studies, the goal of the exercise is to show how a focused, field-based study, conducted in a key location, can help answer much wider scientific questions. The mapping portion of the exercise centers on a suite of moraines resting in a small cirque. Flags placed at specific locations in the cirque give 2 to 4 hypothetical ¹⁴C and exposure-age dates. Based on their field maps, chronologic control points, and selected references, students are asked to make interpretations of paleoclimate, which they then fit into a regional- or global-scale climate picture. By varying the chronologic data student interpretations can center on the last glacial termination, the Younger Dryas cold reversal, or more controversial late-Holocene warming and cooling events.

The major issues encountered in the glacial geology field project are 1) a lack of student familiarity with glacial processes and features and 2) difficulty relating the geomorphic features they identify in the field to contour-defined features on maps. Short previews covering the main landscape features the students will encounter, combined with analogies to familiar sedimentary and tectonic processes, help overcome deficiencies in background. Outcrop discussions between students and instructors have proven to be the most important tool to help students connect map features to landforms. GPS-assisted mapping techniques can help students produce accurate maps but do not produce better map interpretation. The most successful parts of the mapping project are the student's climate interpretations. Nearly all of the participating students are stimulated by the idea that a simple field-based study, given a reliable chronology, can lead to globally-relevant scientific discoveries and publishable results.