Dear Cryolisters,
six cryosphere-related PhD projects being offered as part of the NERC-funded ‘IAPETUS’ Doctoral Training Partnership which links the Universities of Durham, Glasgow, Newcastle, St. Andrews and Stirling with British Geological Survey and the Center for Ecology and Hydrology. IAPETUS is also advertising PhD topics in the wider geosciences and all projects will be for an October 2014 start date. Details of the six cryosphere projects along with contact details are provided below, and broader information on the IAPETUS DTP, including information on how to apply and the application deadline, can be found at www.iapetus.ac.uk
Ocean/ice sheet interactions in the North East Pacific from the warmth of the Pliocene through the icehouse of the Pleistocene
Location: Durham University
Supervisors: Erin McClymont (Durham), Christian Maerz (Newcastle) and Jerry Lloyd (Durham).
The aim of this project is to understand the links between North Pacific ocean circulation change and the history of the Northwest Cordilleran Ice Sheet. The location of the Cordilleran Ice Sheet relative to a new suite of marine sediment cores collected in the Gulf of Alaska during IODP expedition 341 is such that hypotheses about controls on long-term vs. short term feedbacks between ice sheet fluctuations and oceanic and climatic changes can be tested. The PhD student will reconstruct sea surface temperatures and ocean circulation from these ocean sediments using established biomarker proxies (e.g. the UK37' index) to achieve this.
For further information please see http://www.iapetus.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/IAP_13_40-DUR-McClymont.pdf or email: Erin.McClymont@durham.ac.uk
Constraining post-LGM accumulation rates from the interior of West Antarctica with radar data: implications for ice sheet dynamics and evolution
Location: Newcastle University
Supervisors: Neil Ross (Newcastle), Mike Bentley (Durham), Stewart Jamieson (Durham) and Martin Siegert (Bristol)
At present, it is unclear whether the current rates and patterns of mass change in Antarctica are anomalous over centennial to multi-millennial timespans. This project therefore aims to address this gap in knowledge by quantifying rates and patterns of surface accumulation across central West Antarctica since the Last Glacial Maximum. The project will involve processing and interpreting radio-echo sounding data acquired across West Antarctica’s ice divides to calculate past accumulation changes over a wide area and will then assess the sensitivity of glacial isostatic adjustment models to the past accumulation variability.
For further information please see http://www.iapetus.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/IAP_13_68-NEW-Ross.pdf or email: neil.ross@ncl.ac.uk
Subglacial topography and its importance for the growth and long-term stability of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet
Location: Durham University
Supervisors: Mike Bentley (Durham), Stewart Jamieson (Durham), Neil Ross (Newcastle) and Rod Brown (Glasgow)
Topography is an important control upon the past, present and future behaviour of the Antarctic ice sheets, but as the landscape has evolved through time it may have altered the patterns of ice-sheet flow significantly. Therefore, the aim of this project is to understand the role of long-term glacial and tectonic landscape evolution in controlling the behaviour and stability of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet by applying innovative processing of high-resolution satellite imagery to map the subglacial landscape. Numerical models of ice-sheet behaviour will then be used to understand where ice grew and how it evolved in tandem with topography.
For further information please see http://www.iapetus.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/IAP_13_12-DUR-Bentley.pdf or email: M.J.Bentley@durham.ac.uk or Stewart.Jamieson@durham.ac.uk
Characterisation of glacial change in Antarctica via integration of multi-source elevation data
Location: Newcastle University
Supervisors: Jon Mills (Newcastle), Colm Jordan (BGS), Adrian Fox (BAS) and Pauline Miller (Newcastle)
Glaciers in the Antarctic Peninsula are undergoing rapid mass loss but this has been measured only over relatively short timescales because consistent repeat measurements of ice surface height, and therefore ice thickness, are infrequent. This project is CASE-supported by the British Antarctic Survey and aims to quantify longer-term (multi-decadal) mass changes in the Antarctic Peninsula by using digital elevation models (DEMs) generated from a range of archival and satellite datasets using novel photogrammetric techniques. By aligning historical datasets with present-day datasets, the historical record of glacier change will be significantly extended in this region and the results from these will be used by the student to simulate ice flow dynamics across the Antarctic Peninsula.
For further information please see http://www.iapetus.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/IAP_13_64-NEW-Mills.pdf or email: jon.mills@ncl.ac.uk
Global geodesy, glacial isostatic adjustment and present-day elastic loading of the Earth: improved constraints on the global water cycle
Location: Newcastle University
Supervisors: Peter Clarke (Newcastle), Pippa Whitehouse (Durham), Phil Moore (Newcastle)
This project aims to identify and separate long-term signals of glacial isostatic adjustment (GIA) from decadal changes in the storage of continental water and the mass of glaciers and ice sheets. The student will use extensive datasets of modern surface deformation to test a new generation of GIA models in order to help refine understanding of the relative rates of change in the cryosphere and hydrosphere.
For further information please see http://www.iapetus.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/IAP_13_93-NEW-Clark.pdf or email: peter.clarke@ncl.ac.uk
Unravelling glacial isostatic adjustment from the stability of the Antarctic tectonic plate
Location: Newcastle University
Supervisors: Peter Clarke (Newcastle), Pippa Whitehouse (Durham), Phil Moore (Newcastle) and Rob Larter (BAS)
This project focuses on understanding the ongoing deformation of the Antarctic Plate where there are sparse measurements of internal deformation, but where it is suggested the impacts of tectonic activity may, in fact, be causing changes in the interior of Antarctica. These tectonic changes may be masked to some extent by horizontal motions resulting from glacial isostatic adjustment (GIA) related to ice mass loss since the last glacial maximum. The project will use an ensemble of GIA models, constrained by available GPS data, to test hypotheses of plate motion and therefore refine our understanding of the controls upon, and rates of, Antarctic Plate deformation.
For further information please see http://www.iapetus.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/IAP_13_54-NEW-Clark.pdf or email: peter.clarke@ncl.ac.uk
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Dr Stewart S.R. Jamieson
NERC Postdoctoral Fellow
Rm 307 West Building, Department of Geography, Durham University, Science Laboratories, South Road, Durham, DH1 3LE, UK
Email: Stewart.Jamieson@dur.ac.uk
Tel: +44 (0)191 334 1877
Fax: +44 (0)191 334 1801
https://www.dur.ac.uk/geography/staff/geogstaffhidden/?id=8469
