Sturgis and Tekonsha ice advances: Evidence for thin ice sheets in southern Michigan
- Western Michigan Univ., Kalamazoo, MI (United States). Dept. of Geology
Advance of an ice sheet through the Saginaw Lowland to the position of Sturgis, in St. Joseph County, Michigan initially produced the Sturgis Moraine and adjacent outwash apron. As this ice sheet down wasted, meltwater impounded by it overtopped ice divides to form meltwater streams that cut canyons in the ice and underlying glacial sediments. Continued wasting was attended by formation of supraglacial streams that developed waterfalls as they eroded headward. Complete melting of the ice revealed a subglacial topography marked by drumlins, many of which are irregular, attesting to formation near the attenuated margin of the ice sheet. Prior to complete wasting of this stagnant ice mass, ice of the Lake Michigan Lobe advanced from the west-northwest to form the Tekonsha Moraine. Exposed only where this relatively thin ice sheet advanced onto a highland in east-central Kalamazoo County, the southwestern extension of this moraine was buried by outwash from ice that formed the very prominent Kalamazoo Moraine. That the Tekonsha ice sheet stagnated and wasted in place is revealed by two prominent elongate kames, several escarpments, lake and wetland basins produced by melting of ice masses buried by glacial outwash, and sequential filling of the lowland produced by melting of this ice sheet by a series of alluvial fans. The sequence of fan emplacement is indicated by marginal relationships of the fans and the number and size of depressions formed by melting of relic blocks of ice. The first-formed Dry Prairie fan is marked by numerous large depressions while the Prairie Ronde, the last formed fan exhibits only small widely spaced depressions formed by melting of the last vestiges of this ice sheet.
- OSTI ID:
- 7069860
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-9303210-; CODEN: GAAPBC
- Journal Information:
- Geological Society of America, Abstracts with Programs; (United States), Vol. 25:3; Conference: 27. annual Geological Society of America (GSA) North-Central Section meeting, Rolla, MO (United States), 29-30 Mar 1993; ISSN 0016-7592
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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