Apply before: 12 March 2021
Posting:
|
of Sciences Geophysical Institute and the Department of Physical Geography & Geoecology, Charles University, Prague.
The project: Unveiling the First Great Eurasian Ice Sheets will set out to apply a newly
developed cosmogenic nuclide-based burial dating method to reveal the history of the
first major glaciations in Eurasia.
Cosmogenic nuclides are produced by cosmic rays bombarding Earth’s surface.
Measurement of these rare nuclides in rock and sediment has revolutionised the study of
how climate and tectonics have shaped landscapes through time. Earth’s climate has
changed dramatically over geologic time, and knowledge of what drives those changes is
fundamental to understanding our planet and its future. It is well known that vast ice
sheets have advanced and retreated across northern Eurasia many times over the past
few million years. For instance, ~20,000 years ago the maximum extent of the last ice
sheet covered the northern parts of Germany and Poland. Prior to that, however, the
glaciations are poorly understood, and geologists have spent the past century trying to
resolve how the distribution of ice sheets has varied over time. This research project will
set out to apply a newly developed set of dating and modelling tools to unveil the history
of the Early to Middle Pleistocene glaciations in Eurasia (i.e. before 130,000 years ago).
The advisory team will comprise: John Jansen (Czech Academy of Sciences), Martin
Margold (Charles University), and Mads Faurschou Knudsen (Aarhus University).