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Tracking sediment delivery to central Baffin Bay during the past 40 kyrs: Insights from a multiproxy approach and new age model (2023)
Journal Article
Ownsworth, E., Selby, D., Lloyd, J., Knutz, P., Szidat, S., Andrews, J., & Ó Cofaigh, C. (2023). Tracking sediment delivery to central Baffin Bay during the past 40 kyrs: Insights from a multiproxy approach and new age model. Quaternary Science Reviews, 308, Article 108082. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quascirev.2023.108082

Reconstructing former ice sheet history and glaciogenic sediment fluxes surrounding Baffin Bay during and since the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) is a major scientific challenge. Here, a new multi-proxy analysis of sediments from a central Baffin Bay (B... Read More about Tracking sediment delivery to central Baffin Bay during the past 40 kyrs: Insights from a multiproxy approach and new age model.

Ice-ocean interactions at the Northeast Greenland Ice stream (NEGIS) over the past 11,000 years (2023)
Journal Article
Lloyd, J., Ribeiro, S., Weckström, K., Callard, L., Ó Cofaigh, C., Leng, M., …Roberts, D. (2023). Ice-ocean interactions at the Northeast Greenland Ice stream (NEGIS) over the past 11,000 years. Quaternary Science Reviews, 308, Article 108068. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quascirev.2023.108068

Recent observations have identified increased mass loss from Greenland marine-terminating outlet glaciers (MTOG) with implications for global sea-level rise and wider ocean circulation. The flow of Atlantic-sourced waters to the Greenland margin is t... Read More about Ice-ocean interactions at the Northeast Greenland Ice stream (NEGIS) over the past 11,000 years.

Holocene history of the 79° N ice shelf reconstructed from epishelf lake and uplifted glaciomarine sediments (2023)
Journal Article
Smith, J. A., Callard, L., Bentley, M. J., Jamieson, S. S., Sánchez-Montes, M. L., Lane, T. P., …Roberts, D. H. (2023). Holocene history of the 79° N ice shelf reconstructed from epishelf lake and uplifted glaciomarine sediments. The Cryosphere, 17(3), https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-1247-2023

Nioghalvfjerdsbrae, or 79◦ N Glacier, is the largest marine-terminating glacier draining the Northeast Greenland Ice Stream (NEGIS). In recent years, its ∼ 70 km long fringing ice shelf (hereafter referred to as the 79◦ N ice shelf) has thinned, and... Read More about Holocene history of the 79° N ice shelf reconstructed from epishelf lake and uplifted glaciomarine sediments.

The geomorphological record of an ice stream to ice shelf transition in Northeast Greenland (2023)
Journal Article
Lane, T., Darvill, C., Rea, B., Bentley, M., Smith, J., Jamieson, S., …Roberts, D. (2023). The geomorphological record of an ice stream to ice shelf transition in Northeast Greenland. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms, 48(7), 1321-1341. https://doi.org/10.1002/esp.5552

Understanding ice stream dynamics over decadal to millennial timescales is crucial for improving numerical model projections of ice sheet behaviour and future ice loss. In marine-terminating settings, ice shelves play a critical role in controlling i... Read More about The geomorphological record of an ice stream to ice shelf transition in Northeast Greenland.

Growth and retreat of the last British–Irish Ice Sheet, 31 000 to 15 000 years ago: the BRITICE‐CHRONO reconstruction (2022)
Journal Article
Clark, C. D., Ely, J. C., Hindmarsh, R. C., Bradley, S., Ignéczi, A., Fabel, D., …Wilson, P. (2022). Growth and retreat of the last British–Irish Ice Sheet, 31 000 to 15 000 years ago: the BRITICE‐CHRONO reconstruction. Boreas: An International Journal of Quaternary Research, 51(4), 699-758. https://doi.org/10.1111/bor.12594

The BRITICE-CHRONO consortium of researchers undertook a dating programme to constrain the timing of advance, maximum extent and retreat of the British–Irish Ice Sheet between 31 000 and 15 000 years before present. The dating campaign across Ireland... Read More about Growth and retreat of the last British–Irish Ice Sheet, 31 000 to 15 000 years ago: the BRITICE‐CHRONO reconstruction.

Character of advance and retreat of the southwest sector of the British-Irish Ice Sheet during the last glaciation (2022)
Journal Article
Giglio, C., Benetti, S., Plets, R., Dunlop, P., Ó Cofaigh, C., Sacchetti, F., & Salomon, E. (2022). Character of advance and retreat of the southwest sector of the British-Irish Ice Sheet during the last glaciation. Quaternary Science Reviews, 291, Article 107655. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quascirev.2022.107655

Relict landforms and sediments across former glaciated settings provide information about ice-sheet dynamics and can contribute to the understanding of the behaviour of contemporary ice masses, for which observations are limited in spatial and tempor... Read More about Character of advance and retreat of the southwest sector of the British-Irish Ice Sheet during the last glaciation.

Subglacial Water Flow Over an Antarctic Palaeo‐Ice Stream Bed (2022)
Journal Article
Hogan, K., Arnold, N., Larter, R., Kirkham, J., Noormets, R., Ó Cofaigh, C., …Dowdeswell, J. (2022). Subglacial Water Flow Over an Antarctic Palaeo‐Ice Stream Bed. Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface, 127(2), Article e2021JF006442. https://doi.org/10.1029/2021jf006442

The subglacial hydrological system exerts a critical control on the dynamic behavior of the overlying ice because its configuration affects the degree of basal lubrication between the ice and the bed. Yet, this component of the glaciological system i... Read More about Subglacial Water Flow Over an Antarctic Palaeo‐Ice Stream Bed.

GlaciDat – a GIS database of submarine glacial landforms and sediments in the Arctic (2022)
Journal Article
Streuff, K. T., Ó Cofaigh, C., & Wintersteller, P. (2022). GlaciDat – a GIS database of submarine glacial landforms and sediments in the Arctic. Boreas: An International Journal of Quaternary Research, 51(3), 517-531. https://doi.org/10.1111/bor.12577

A digital database for submarine glacial landforms and sediments formed in the Arctic during and since the Last Glacial Maximum was created in order to facilitate and underpin new research on palaeo-ice sheets and tidewater glacier dynamics. The glac... Read More about GlaciDat – a GIS database of submarine glacial landforms and sediments in the Arctic.

A Late Pleistocene channelized subglacial meltwater system on the Atlantic continental shelf south of Ireland (2021)
Journal Article
Giglio, C., Benetti, S., Sacchetti, F., Lockhart, E., Hughes Clarke, J., Plets, R., …Dunlop, P. (2022). A Late Pleistocene channelized subglacial meltwater system on the Atlantic continental shelf south of Ireland. Boreas: An International Journal of Quaternary Research, 51(1), 118-135. https://doi.org/10.1111/bor.12536

The study of palaeo-glacial landforms and sediments can give insights into the nature and dynamics of ice sheets. This is particularly the case with regards to the subglacial record, which is challenging to observe in contemporary glaciated settings... Read More about A Late Pleistocene channelized subglacial meltwater system on the Atlantic continental shelf south of Ireland.

Exploring controls of the early and stepped deglaciation on the western margin of the British Irish Ice Sheet (2021)
Journal Article
Benetti, S., Chiverrell, R. C., Cofaigh, C. Ó., Burke, M., Medialdea, A., Small, D., …Weilbach, K. (2021). Exploring controls of the early and stepped deglaciation on the western margin of the British Irish Ice Sheet. Journal of Quaternary Science, 36(5), 833 - 870. https://doi.org/10.1002/jqs.3315

New optically stimulated luminescence dating and Bayesian models integrating all legacy and BRITICE-CHRONO geochronology facilitated exploration of the controls on the deglaciation of two former sectors of the British–Irish Ice Sheet, the Donegal Bay... Read More about Exploring controls of the early and stepped deglaciation on the western margin of the British Irish Ice Sheet.

Timing, pace and controls on ice sheet retreat: an introduction to the BRITICE‐CHRONO transect reconstructions of the British–Irish Ice Sheet (2021)
Journal Article
Clark, C. D., Chiverrell, R. C., Fabel, D., Hindmarsh, R. C., Ó Cofaigh, C., & Scourse, J. D. (2021). Timing, pace and controls on ice sheet retreat: an introduction to the BRITICE‐CHRONO transect reconstructions of the British–Irish Ice Sheet. Journal of Quaternary Science, 36(5), 673-680. https://doi.org/10.1002/jqs.3326

Motivated to help improve the robustness of predictions of sea level rise, the BRITICE-CHRONO project advanced knowledge of the former British–Irish Ice Sheet, from 31 to 15 ka, so that it can be used as a data-rich environment to improve ice sheet m... Read More about Timing, pace and controls on ice sheet retreat: an introduction to the BRITICE‐CHRONO transect reconstructions of the British–Irish Ice Sheet.

Maximum extent and readvance dynamics of the Irish Sea Ice Stream and Irish Sea Glacier since the Last Glacial Maximum (2021)
Journal Article
Scourse, J., Chiverrell, R., Smedley, R., Small, D., Burke, M., Saher, M., …Clark, C. (2021). Maximum extent and readvance dynamics of the Irish Sea Ice Stream and Irish Sea Glacier since the Last Glacial Maximum. Journal of Quaternary Science, 1-25. https://doi.org/10.1002/jqs.3313

The BRITICE‐CHRONO Project has generated a suite of recently published radiocarbon ages from deglacial sequences offshore in the Celtic and Irish seas and terrestrial cosmogenic nuclide and optically stimulated luminescence ages from adjacent onshore... Read More about Maximum extent and readvance dynamics of the Irish Sea Ice Stream and Irish Sea Glacier since the Last Glacial Maximum.

Timing and pace of ice-sheet withdrawal across the marine-terrestrial transition west of Ireland during the last glaciation (2021)
Journal Article
Ó Cofaigh, C., Callrd, S., Roberts, D., Chiverrell, R., Ballantyne, C., Evans, D., …Sacchetti, F. (2021). Timing and pace of ice-sheet withdrawal across the marine-terrestrial transition west of Ireland during the last glaciation. Journal of Quaternary Science, 36(5), 805-832. https://doi.org/10.1002/jqs.3295

Understanding the pace and drivers of marine-based ice-sheet retreat relies upon the integration of numerical ice-sheet models with observations from contemporary polar ice sheets and well-constrained palaeo-glaciological reconstructions. This paper... Read More about Timing and pace of ice-sheet withdrawal across the marine-terrestrial transition west of Ireland during the last glaciation.

Pattern, style and timing of British–Irish Ice Sheet advance and retreat over the last 45 000 years: evidence from NW Scotland and the adjacent continental shelf (2021)
Journal Article
Bradwell, T., Fabel, D., Clark, C. D., Chiverrell, R. C., Small, D., Smedley, R. K., …Ó Cofaigh, C. (2021). Pattern, style and timing of British–Irish Ice Sheet advance and retreat over the last 45 000 years: evidence from NW Scotland and the adjacent continental shelf. Journal of Quaternary Science, 36(5), 871 - 933. https://doi.org/10.1002/jqs.3296

Predicting the future response of ice sheets to climate warming and rising global sea level is important but difficult. This is especially so when fast-flowing glaciers or ice streams, buffered by ice shelves, are grounded on beds below sea level. Wh... Read More about Pattern, style and timing of British–Irish Ice Sheet advance and retreat over the last 45 000 years: evidence from NW Scotland and the adjacent continental shelf.

The deglaciation of the western sector of the Irish Ice Sheet from the inner continental shelf to its terrestrial margin (2020)
Journal Article
Roberts, D., Ó Cofaigh, C., Ballantyne, C., Burke, M., Chiverrell, R., Evans, D., …Callard, S. (2020). The deglaciation of the western sector of the Irish Ice Sheet from the inner continental shelf to its terrestrial margin. Boreas: An International Journal of Quaternary Research, 49(3), 438-460. https://doi.org/10.1111/bor.12448

This paper provides a new deglacial chronology for retreat of the Irish Ice Sheet from the continental shelf of western Ireland to the adjoining coastline, a region where the timing and drivers of ice recession have never been fully constrained. Prev... Read More about The deglaciation of the western sector of the Irish Ice Sheet from the inner continental shelf to its terrestrial margin.

Final deglaciation of the Malin Sea through meltwater release and calving events (2020)
Journal Article
Tarlati, S., Benetti, S., Callard, S., Ó Cofaigh, C., Dunlop, P., Georgiopoulou, A., …Clark, C. (2020). Final deglaciation of the Malin Sea through meltwater release and calving events. Scottish Journal of Geology, 56(2), 117-133. https://doi.org/10.1144/sjg2019-010

During the last glacial maximum, the British–Irish Ice Sheet (BIIS) extended to the shelf edge in the Malin Sea between Ireland and Scotland, delivering sediments to the Donegal Barra Fan (DBF). Analysis of well-preserved, glacially derived sediment... Read More about Final deglaciation of the Malin Sea through meltwater release and calving events.

Oscillating retreat of the last British-Irish Ice Sheet on the continental shelf offshore Galway Bay, western Ireland (2019)
Journal Article
Callard, S. L., Ó Cofaigh, C., Benetti, S., Chiverrell, R. C., Van Landeghem, K. J., Saher, M. H., …Moreton, S. G. (2020). Oscillating retreat of the last British-Irish Ice Sheet on the continental shelf offshore Galway Bay, western Ireland. Marine Geology, 420, Article 106087. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.margeo.2019.106087

During the Last Glacial Maximum, the British-Irish Ice Sheet extended across the continental shelf offshore of Galway Bay, western Ireland, and reached a maximum westward extent on the Porcupine Bank. New marine geophysical data, sediment cores and r... Read More about Oscillating retreat of the last British-Irish Ice Sheet on the continental shelf offshore Galway Bay, western Ireland.

Pattern, style and timing of British–Irish Ice Sheet retreat: Shetland and northern North Sea sector (2019)
Journal Article
Bradwell, T., Small, D., Fabel, D., Clark, C. D., Chiverrell, R. C., Saher, M. H., …Ó Cofaigh, C. (2021). Pattern, style and timing of British–Irish Ice Sheet retreat: Shetland and northern North Sea sector. Journal of Quaternary Science, 36(5), 681-722. https://doi.org/10.1002/jqs.3163

The offshore sector around Shetland remains one of the least well‐studied parts of the former British–Irish Ice Sheet with several long‐standing scientific issues unresolved. These key issues include (i) the dominance of a locally sourced ‘Shetland i... Read More about Pattern, style and timing of British–Irish Ice Sheet retreat: Shetland and northern North Sea sector.

Dynamic ice stream retreat in the central sector of the last British-Irish Ice Sheet (2019)
Journal Article
Davies, B., Livingstone, S., Roberts, D., Evans, D., Gheorghiu, D., & Ó Cofaigh, C. (2019). Dynamic ice stream retreat in the central sector of the last British-Irish Ice Sheet. Quaternary Science Reviews, 225, Article 105989. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quascirev.2019.105989

During the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), ice streams of the last British-Irish Ice Sheet (BIIS) controlled ice discharge from various dispersal centres. Deglaciation was characterised by shifts in ice-divide location and changes in internal ice-sheet d... Read More about Dynamic ice stream retreat in the central sector of the last British-Irish Ice Sheet.

Controls on the formation of turbidity current channels associated with marine-terminating glaciers and ice sheets (2019)
Journal Article
Pope, E. L., Normandeau, A., Ó Cofaigh, C., Stokes, C. R., & Talling, P. J. (2019). Controls on the formation of turbidity current channels associated with marine-terminating glaciers and ice sheets. Marine Geology, 415, Article 105951. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.margeo.2019.05.010

Submarine channels, and the sediment density flows which form them, act as conduits for the transport of sediment, macro-nutrients, fresher water and organic matter from the coast to the deep sea. These systems are therefore significant pathways for... Read More about Controls on the formation of turbidity current channels associated with marine-terminating glaciers and ice sheets.