Boulder Ridges and Overwash Sediments in Galway Bay, Western Ireland. Genesis and Chronology of Extreme Wave Events during the Recent Holocene

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Dieter Kelletat
• Subject Area: Physical Geography
• Term: from 2015 to 2017
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 288491336

The central west coast of Ireland may exhibit the most spectacular boulder deposits from marine impacts during the Recent Holocene. They appear in similar aspects along the very exposed shorelines of the Aran Islands as well as along the sheltered shorelines within Galway Bay. Conclusions on their origin, storm waves or tsunamis, remain controversial. Not investigated so far are geo-archives like over-wash fans and well stratified sediment layers connected with the main boulder ridges. This new proposal is a pilot study to analyse the stratigraphy and sedimentology as well as the chronology of these deposits continuously along 25 km of the SE coast of the Galway Bay to compare their history with that of the boulder ridges and boulder clusters, and to contribute again to the enigma of coastal boulder transport.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants