Megafloods

Six Really Big Events You Should Know About (in addition to the one you may remember!)

1 Tyler B Thompson MidMichigan Rock Club Tuesday, April 7, 2015 Types of Glacial Megafloods

• Sea Inundation

• Glacial Lake Outburst Flood • Ice dam floated • Moraine dam breached • Barrier overtopped & eroded

• Jökulhlaup

Tyler B Thompson MidMichigan Rock Club Tuesday, April 7, 2015 2 Water, Water Everywhere!

Inundation of Sundaland Inundation of Black Sea Glacial Lake Agassiz

Glacial Lake Missoula

Lake Bonneville

Altai Glacial Lake Floods

Tyler B Thompson MidMichigan Rock Club Tuesday, April 7, 2015 3 Eden in the East

Tyler B Thompson MidMichigan Rock Club Tuesday, April 7, 2015 4 Mesopotamia Inundated

Tyler B Thompson MidMichigan Rock Club Tuesday, April 7, 2015 5 Mesopotamia Inundated

Tyler B Thompson MidMichigan Rock Club Tuesday, April 7, 2015 6 Black Sea Inundation

Tyler B Thompson MidMichigan Rock Club Tuesday, April 7, 2015 7 Glacial Lake Agassiz

Tyler B Thompson MidMichigan Rock Club Tuesday, April 7, 2015 8 Agassiz Phases

Tyler B Thompson MidMichigan Rock Club Tuesday, April 7, 2015 9 Agassiz Phases

Tyler B Thompson MidMichigan Rock Club Tuesday, April 7, 2015 10 Agassiz Ojibway 9,000 ybp

Tyler B Thompson MidMichigan Rock Club Tuesday, April 7, 2015 11 The Final Breakout

8,400 ybp

Tyler B Thompson MidMichigan Rock Club Tuesday, April 7, 2015 12 Siberian Altai Flood

Tyler B Thompson MidMichigan Rock Club Tuesday, April 7, 2015 13 Evidence: Ripples

Tyler B Thompson MidMichigan Rock Club Tuesday, April 7, 2015 14 Evidence: Terraces

Tyler B Thompson MidMichigan Rock Club Tuesday, April 7, 2015 15 Altai Flood

Tyler B Thompson MidMichigan Rock Club Tuesday, April 7, 2015 16 Altai Flood

Tyler B Thompson MidMichigan Rock Club Tuesday, April 7, 2015 17 Lake Bonneville

Tyler B Thompson MidMichigan Rock Club Tuesday, April 7, 2015 18 Water, Water Everywhere! Volume Max Flow Area Depth Flood km3 m3 km3 m Sundaland 600,000 52 15-13.5 kabp 10 kabp + 1,700,000 + 60 7,700 610 L. Missoula 2,184 3-16 x 106 15-13 kabp lake area (ice dam) 155,000 80 m Black Sea 10,000? 463,000 7,600 ybp flooded increase

L. Agassiz >20,000 0.5 x 106 440,000 2-4 m MSL 11,335 ybp 6 8,400 ybp >40,000 5 x 10 lake area rise

1,500 650 Altai 600 10 x 106 12-9 kabp lake area (ice dam) 5,000 83,000 300 L. Bonneville 930,000 14,500 ybp initial breach max before 105 initial drop

Tyler B Thompson MidMichigan Rock Club Tuesday, April 7, 2015 19