Week 1: Introduction and Gondwana

Lecture 1: Introduction to the unit ( Prof Andrew McMinn)
Antarctic and sub-Antarctic geography and the continent (Dr John Gibson)
Peri-Antarctic islands. Where is the northern limit of the sub-Antarctic? Some quite northerly islands (Gough, Tristan du Cunha etc) included due to their climate. Why are they there - most the result of volcanism.
The continent: Ice and Rock - mostly ice, but quite a bit of rock. Where does the rock appear - mountain ranges, near outlet glaciers. Nature and location of mountain ranges - glacial landforms dominate. Existence of exposed rock at the last glacial maximum. The Antarctic peninsula and the Dry Valleys - a special cases. Coastal oases - why they occur and what keeps them going. Special case - the Vestfold Hills

Lecture 2: History and development of ideas (Dr Will Howard)
How do we know what we think we know so far? History of plate tectonics and ice-age theories.

Lecture 3: How it's done (Dr Will Howard)
Sampling the past: coring and drilling the seabed and ice sheets for climate archives. Time scales: how do we know "what time it is?"

Download (right click link and choose 'Save') a sample PowerPoint mini-lecture (2 MB, sound) from Dr Will Howard! Note: If you don't have PowerPoint you will also need the PowerPoint viewer (zip file, 2 MB, PC only)

Tutorial: Excursion to Clifton Beach (early evening, late September)