Date of Award

12-2025

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science in Geology

Department

Geological Sciences

First Reader/Committee Chair

Dr. Claire Todd

Abstract

This study investigates the history of ice sheet surface elevation at the Outback Nunataks in East Antarctica using exposure age dating and geomorphic mapping. We identified glacial landforms at Roberts Butte, Miller Butte, and Frontier Mountain, in the Outback Nunatak range, using 2023 Landsat Image Mosaic of Antarctica (LIMA) and 2022 Reference Elevation Model of Antarctica (REMA). We collected bedrock and glacial erratic samples for cosmogenic nuclide analysis from Roberts Butte and Miller Butte during the 2023-24 United States Antarctic Program field season. Analysis of glacial erratics reflect inherited cosmogenic nuclide concentrations, resulting in apparent exposure ages between 359 and 42 ka. Apparent bedrock exposure ages indicate that the ice sheet has not completely overridden Roberts Butte in at least 5.3 Ma. Modeling of bedrock nuclide concentrations from lower elevation sites at Roberts Butte indicate at least four cycles of exposure for 50 to 100 ka and burial for 1 Ma. Our results suggest the ice sheet has not thickened more than 215 m over the last five million years.

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