Mountain climate and periglacial phenomena in the Faeroe Islands

Abstract

The location of the Faeroe Islands in a climatically unique part of the North Atlantic region provides an opportunity to register the timing and severity of late Quaternary climatic changes. These reflect the cessation and renewal of thermohaline circulation. In this context, this paper provides an introduction to the late Weichselian and Holocene periglacial geomorphology of the Faeroe Islands. It presents the most prominent periglacial phenomena together with their altitudinal and spatial distribution. Although permafrost has been absent during the Holocene, the occurrence of late Weichselian rock glaciers indicates the former presence of permafrost. The modern periglacial environment is characterized by wind action, avalanche activity, talus production, debris flows, solifluction and the development of small‐scale patterned ground. The distribution of active periglacial phenomena is analysed in relation to air and soil temperatures, measured 1995–97, at various altitudes. The altitudinal range of 250–450 m ASL represents the modern lower limit for periglacial activity, and corresponds to a mean annual air temperature of 5·0–3·5 °C. Above this altitudinal range, periglacial features such as small‐scale patterned ground and sorted stripes are widespread and plant growth is restricted. This periglacial zone extends to the top of the highlands (maximum altitude 882 m ASL). Today, the potential permafrost and glaciation levels are presumably situated 300–450 m and 150–250 m above the highest mountains, respectively. Past Holocene periglacial activity is documented by 14C accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) dates, the 100 year temperature record from Tórshavn, statistics of whale catch and other historical records from the Faeroe Islands and neighbouring areas. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Age and significance of aeolian sediment reworking on high plateaux in the Scottish Highlands

“…The latter achieve their greatest extent and thickness on lee slopes bordering Torridon Sandstone plateaux in the NW Highlands (Peach et al, 1913;Godard, 1965;Ballantyne and Whittington, 1987;Ballantyne, 1993Ballantyne, , 1995 but also occur on or at the margins of plateaux underlain by other lithologies, including Devonian sandstone on Orkney (Goodier and Ball, 1975), granite on Shetland and in the Cairngorms (Ball and Goodier, 1974), quartzite in NW Scotland (Pye and Paine, 1983), basalts on Mull and Skye (Birse, 1980;Ballantyne 1998), ultrabasic rocks on Rhum, Moine Schists in the NW Highlands and Dalradian schists in the Grampian Highlands (Ballantyne and Harris, 1994; Figure 1). Similar deposits have been reported from other maritime periglacial environments characterized by strong winds, such as NW Ireland (Wilson, 1989), Iceland (Arnalds, 2000) and the Faeroe Islands (Christiansen, 1998;Humlum and Christiansen, 1998).…”

Climate change and human settlement as drivers of late-Holocene vegetational change in the Faroe Islands

“…At higher altitudes, the soil cover is thin and continuously moist, with greater minerogenic content (J6hansen, 1989). Aeolian deposits chiefly occur above 250-450 m a.s.l., which is the modern limit for periglacial activity on the Faroe Islands (Humlum and Christiansen, 1998).…”

Topography of a composite relict rock glacier, ślęża massif, sw poland

“…A complex system of depressions and intermediate lobes is the most characteristic feature of morphology of rock glaciers known from elsewhere (cf. Corte 1976;Barsch 1996a, p. 26-27;Humlum and Christiansen 1998). A gradually transition of a slope into a rock glacier is not an exception and the frontal and lateral parts are expressed much more significantly, as a rule (Outcalt and Benedict 1965;Barsch 1986a, p. 18).…”

“…Many descriptions of relict rock glaciers exist (Derbyshire 1973;De Jong and Kwadijk 1988;Barsch 1996b;Harrison et al 1996;Humlum and Christiansen 1998;Matsuoka and Ikeda 1998), but no study has yet been documented by use of geodesy techniques. In contrast, the relief of active rock glaciers has been investigated quantitatively by studies of the spatial pattern of movement velocities (cf.…”