Geology 294:  Glaciers and Climate

Spring 2005

 

Time:  MWF 10:50-11:50

Olin-Rice 175

 

Instructor: 

Kelly MacGregor

Office:  Olin-Rice 116

Office hours:  M 12-2

651-696-6441 (office)

612-724-4554 (home)

macgregor@macalester.edu

 

Textbooks:

(Alley) Richard B. Alley (2000).  The Two-Mile Time Machine:  Ice cores, abrupt climate change, and our future.  Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ.  229 pg.

 

(I&I) John Imbrie & Katherine P. Imbrie (1979).  Ice Ages:  Solving the mystery.  Enslow Publishers, Short Hills, NJ.  224 pg.

 

(N&D) Atle Nesje & Svein Olaf Dahl (2000).  Glaciers and Environmental Change.  Key Issues in Environmental Change Series. Oxford University Press, New York, NY.  203 pg.

 

There will be additional readings assigned throughout the semester – these will be announced in class and posted on the moodle course page (moodle.macalester.edu – see the Glaciers and Climate page).

 

Syllabus (Tentative):

 

January 24-28:             Glaciers and mass balance

Readings:                      Part I (Ch. 1-3), I&I; Ch. 1 (all) & Ch. 4 (48-75), N&D

 

 

Jan. 31-Feb 4:              Mass Balance; Glacier Hydrology

Readings:                      Ch. 4 (98-115), N&D; Benn & Evans (reserve)

 

 

Feb. 7-11:                    Ice Motion

Readings:                      Anderson (or MacGregor in press) (reserve)                

 

 

Feb. 14-18:                  Glacier Erosion & Deposition

Readings:                      Iverson (reserve); Ch. 13, Easterbrook (reserve)

 

 

Feb. 21-25:                  Ice Sheets

Readings:                      Joughin (reserve); reserve (TBA)

Tuesday, Feb. 22, noon:  Talk by Neal Iverson, Iowa State

 

 

Feb. 28-March 4:         Sea level change; isostasy

Readings:                      Ch. 6 (N&D); reserve (TBA) 

 

 

March 7-11:                 Climate history & controls on climate

Readings:                      reserve (TBA); Ch. 2, N&D;

Paper 1 due

 

March 14-18:               Controls on climate & feedbacks with glaciers/ice sheets

Readings:                      Part II (Ch. 4-9), I&I; Parts III & IV (83-165), Alley

 

March 21-25:               Spring Break

 

 

March 28-April 1:        Oxygen Isotopes

Readings:                      Part II (Ch. 10-15), I&I; Zachos (reserve); Rahmstorf (reserve)

 

 

April 4-8:                     Ice Cores

Readings:                      Part I & II (3-79), Alley; Ch. 3 (all), N&D

 

 

April 11-15:                 Climate & Ice Sheet Models

Readings:                      reserve (TBA)

 

 

April 18-22:                 Glaciers & Climate: today and in the future

Readings:                      Part V (169-192), Alley; Karl (reserve); physics today (reserve)

 

April 25-29:                 Presentations

 

 

May 4-8:                      Presentations

Paper II due

Friday, May 6 10:30-12:30  Presentations