UKC

ARTICLE: The Geology of Britain - A Climber's Perspective: Part 1 - Igneous Rocks

New Topic
This topic has been archived, and won't accept reply postings.
 UKC Articles 11 Mar 2019
The Geology of BritainIn this three-part series, Pete Reynolds AKA 'The Lakeland Rock Doctor' takes us on a tour of the varied and interesting rocks of the British Isles upon which we love to climb...

The British Isles are composed of a remarkable combination and variety of rock types assembled over millennia. We can never hope to understand all their curios and quirks in a short series of articles, or even a lifetime. However, this series of articles provides some insight into the geological history of Britain, as well as how Earth processes ultimately influence our leisure, craft and profession. The articles are divided according to the 3 main types of rocks (igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic).



Read more
 Banksbroo 11 Mar 2019

You've missed out Shetland from the map, location of some of the most complex and varied geology in the UK, and some outstanding climbing too!

In reply to UKC Articles:

This is a useful interactive map to complement the article.

http://mapapps.bgs.ac.uk/geologyofbritain/home.html?

 IanMcC 11 Mar 2019
In reply to keith-ratcliffe:

Hi Keith

There's an interesting App for Android called iGeology. Look it up in the Playstore. (If you're at the wall tomorrow, I'll demonstrate it)

 ChrisJD 11 Mar 2019
In reply to keith-ratcliffe:

This later version of the BGS viewer is better:

http://mapapps.bgs.ac.uk/geologyofbritain3d/

 ChrisJD 11 Mar 2019
In reply to UKC Articles:

And high-res scans of the 'actual' maps sheets can be viewed here:

https://www.bgs.ac.uk/data/maps/maps.cfc?method=listResults&MapName=&am...

Click on the 'Full Entry' link, then hunt out the small 'View Map' Link

Using this web-site makes it easier to work out what sheet you need for an area:

https://geologyresources.co.uk/maps/

Post edited at 19:56
 ChrisJD 11 Mar 2019
In reply to UKC Articles:

... and those gabbro crystals are definitely pleased to see each other.

 simes303 12 Mar 2019
In reply to UKC Articles:

Not quite on topic, but definitely an interesting geology related coloured map:

https://fineartamerica.com/featured/british-isles-river-basins-in-rainbow-c...

 TobyA 12 Mar 2019
In reply to simes303:

> Not quite on topic, but definitely an interesting geology related coloured map:

I saw that elsewhere and was also captivated by it. You can see why the water company Severn-Trent actually makes a lot sense from looking at that. I wish there was a similar map that you could zoom in on and get info on all the rivers and streams preferably with some sort of faded background of standard mapping so you can see what is where in relation to the non-water based  background.

 simes303 12 Mar 2019
In reply to TobyA:

I like that you can clearly see a dividing line running through Ireland, SW to NE, and the Pennines.

 jezzah 12 Mar 2019
In reply to UKC Articles:

Thanks for the article. Looking forward to part 2 and 3

 RKernan 19 Mar 2019
In reply to UKC Articles:

Brilliant article. I feel compelled to mention a bugbear: the confusion of the terms UK/Britain/"British Isles". The "Geology of Britain" BGS photo at the top of the article includes Northern Ireland, which is not part of Britain. The article also seems to use the terms "British Isles" and "Britain" interchangeably but (aside from the separate issue of the previous term being seen as offensive on one of the islands concerned, which is really besides the point) the article only mentions the geology of Britain and the Scottish islands and not Northern Ireland, or Ireland more widely - for example the Kilt Rock-esque Fair Head, or the Arran-like Mournes.

Just an issue of confusing and inaccurate terminology, and I don't mean to take away from the content of the article, which is excellent and very interesting.


New Topic
This topic has been archived, and won't accept reply postings.
Loading Notifications...