GENESIS OF THE KENT INTERLOBATE MORAINE: PRELIMINARY RESULTS

Understanding the genesis of moraines is fundamental to understanding palaeo ice sheet extent and dynamics. A complex set of moraines that were laid down by the Laurentide Ice Sheet during Late Wisconsinan deglaciation is present in North-east Ohio. These are mostly end and recessional moraines and have been studied in some detail by other researchers. The moraine of most interest is here named the Kent Interlobate Moraine. The Kent interlobate moraine was formed between the Grand River and Killbuck sublobes (part of the larger Erie lobe). It is approximately 50 miles long and runs from the center of Geauga County, through Portage County, to the southern parts of Stark County. The moraine ranges from 7 miles wide to 15 miles wide. The moraine is easily identified on satellite imagery, air photographs, and Digital Elevation Models as a hummocky, pitted surface. Multiple gravel pits are present in the moraine, and each displays sorted, bedded sand and gravel. This paper presents a preliminary study on the geomorphology and sedimentology of the Kent interlobate moraine of northeastern Ohio.