Glacial Erosion of Snowdon

Impact of glacial erosion on Be concentrations in fluvial sediments of the Marsyandi catchment, central Nepal

[1] Several processes contribute to denudation in high-mountain environments. Of these, glacial erosion is particularly difficult to constrain, despite its critical importance in the evolution of many mountain ranges. In this study, we present a new data set of Be concentrations in fluvial sediments sampled along the Marsyandi River and its main tributaries in central Nepal. We interpret the Be...

Assessing the relative efficiency of fluvial and glacial erosion through simulation of fluvial landscapes

The relative rates of erosion by rivers and glaciers, and the topographic effects of these two different styles of erosion, remain outstanding problems in geomorphology. We use a quantitative description of local fluvial landscapes to estimate how glaciated landscapes might look now had glaciers not developed. This indicates the landscape modification attributable to glacial erosion. We present...

Selective glacial erosion and weathering zones in the coastal mountains of Marie Byrd Land, Antarctica

In the coastal mountains of Marie Byrd Land, Antarctica, there is a juxtaposition of ice moulded landforms at lower altitudes and upstanding summits with weathered surfaces bearing tors. This paper uses geomorphological mapping and exposure dating to test two hypotheses commonly used to explain such a landscape contrast: either the pattern reflects contrasts in glacial erosion related to the ba...

The influence of glacial erosion on landscape evolution and basin morphology in the Bitterroot Mountains Montana

The relative efficacy of fluvial and glacial erosion over modern to orogenic timescales

Since the late nineteenth century, it has been debated whether rivers or glaciers are more effective agents of erosion1. The dramatic landscapes associated with glaciated terrain have often led to the argument that glaciers are more erosive than rivers, and recent studies have documented the topographic signature of an ice-controlled limit of mountain height known as the ‘glacial buzz-saw’2,3. ...