Last Glacial Maximum
The Last Glacial Maximum
22,000 years ago this whole area was covered by a thick layer of ice – as was most of Scotland and Ireland, all the way down to the North of England and Wales. The ice started melting 20,000 years ago but didn’t all disappear until about 11,500 years ago. There is lots of evidence showing this all around Fife and Scotland.
What did it look like?
Panorama
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This is a photosphere taken on a glacier in Iceland, but it helps you to imagine what it would have been like here 20000 years ago. Very cold, and very little vegetation! Click and drag to explore!
How do we know?
These are some of the formations that can be found throughout Fife which can be used as evidence of glacial retreats throughout time:
A drumlin forms when a glacier deposits material, more at one end than the other, giving it a characteristic blunt end where the most material was deposited, and a sloping lee side behind. There are often lots of them found together, forming a “drumlin field”. These help us to understand how and where the glacier retreated.
Moraines form when the glacier deposits material that it has been carrying. The material it deposits at the snout (end) form the terminal moraine. If material is deposited along the side of the glacier, this is called a lateral moraine. If the material is deposited from the middle of the glacier, this forms a medial moraine. They record exactly where the glacier was at a certain time, but are sometimes incomplete as they can be eroded by floods and wind over time.
This is a channel that runs alongside the edge of the glacier, draining away any water that has melted. It can sometimes be seen after glaciation, and helps us to understand how big the glacier was at different times.
Meet Susie the Squirrel!
Susie knows all about how Tentsmuir has changed through time from her travels into the past. Look out for her as she takes us with her on her adventures!
Brrrrrrrr – goodness, it was chilly in Tentsmiur 15000 years ago! Where you are standing right now used to be covered by an enormous glacier, which is like a massive frozen river. It used to cover all of Scotland and Ireland, and go all the way down to the top of England and Wales. It was at its biggest 21000 years ago, but started melting for good about 10000 years ago. It melted from the outside first, so the bit that was over the sea melted and then the ice that was on the land. It was all the ice that was on top of Scotland all that time ago that made the big valleys we see in the highlands today. I’m certainly glad I wasn’t around 15000 years ago – no trees! No nuts! And verrryyyyyy cooollllddddd!