Late Quaternary glaciation in Southern Africa: moraine ridges and glacial deposits at Mount Enterprise in the Drakensberg of the Eastern Cape Province,South Africa |
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| Authors: | Colin A Lewis Peter M Illgner |
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| Abstract: | Late Quaternary moraines and diamictons containing striated clasts are described from near Elliot in the Drakensberg of South Africa. An equilibrium line altitude (ELA) of 2109 m is suggested for the palaeoglacier associated with the innermost moraine. This glacier was fed by a very extensive snowblow area and the ELA may reflect the temperature–precipitation–wind ELA rather than the temperature–precipitation ELA and be considerably below the ‘regional’ ELA. Mean annual air temperatures when glaciation occurred were probably at least 10.0°C below those of the present. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. |
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| Keywords: | South Africa palaeoglacier reconstruction protalus ramparts equilibrium line altitude |
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