Late Weichselian ice recession in the central Barents Sea

Abstract

The reconstruction of the late Weichselian Barents Sea Ice-Sheet is still largely based on indirect evidences, such as the pattern of isostatic rebound, undated till ridges, general lithostratigraphy and the distribution of overcompacted diamicton, or basal till. However, the recent observation of glacial flutes in central parts of the Barents Sea, represents the first direct evidence of the existence of a grounded ice-sheet in the region. Glacial flutes, interpreted to represent formation under a normally sliding, temperated glacier, suggest ice recession by calving without surge. Due to the lack of sufficient amounts of datable materials in the glacigenic sediments, the timing of the recession can only be discussed in relative terms. -from Authors