2 October 2013
UK Earth Science Week takes place on 7-13 October, and will be a celebration of the geology on our doorsteps in the UK. Throughout the week, the Geological Society will be organising and promoting geology walks, both guided and self-guided, in cities across the UK, culminating in the Great Geowalk on Saturday 12th.
All week, Imperial College’s Matt Loader will be guiding geowalks in Central London, and on Saturday 12th Ruth Siddall, Senior Lecturer in Earth Sciences at University College London, will guide a walk in collaboration with London Walks, exploring Piccadilly’s geological heritage.
‘London is one of the world’s great historical cities’ says Matt, ‘with a rich heritage stretching back well over a thousand years. But the stones that make up London’s great buildings tell a story that is more mysterious and much older – of volcanoes, crashing continents and ancient creatures.’
‘Because London has never had good, local building stone resource’ adds Ruth, ‘the materials here have been imported from all over the British Isles, and indeed the world. Piccadilly and its surrounding streets are an ideal place to study global geology in just a few hundred metres.’
Guided geology walks are also taking place in Aberdeenshire, Manchester and St Andrews. To take part, visit www.geolsoc.org.uk/earthscienceweek13, or follow the #greatgeowalk on twitter.
To mark the week, Geoscientist magazine is holding the first ever ‘kerbsurvey’, asking members of the public to record evidence of mysterious markings carved into Victorian kerbstones across the country.
‘Kerbstones are often a feature of geological walking tours’ says geologist Peter Dolan, who is leading the survey, ‘but there is no definitive explanation as to why these markings are sometimes found on their surfaces. We hope that by crowd sourcing information from across the country, we can shed some light on the mystery.’
For more information about the Geoscientist kerbsurvey, visit www.geolsoc.org.uk/kerbsurvey
Earth Science Week also features a photography competition with the theme ‘geology on your doorstep’, and several public, free events at Burlington House. Follow us on twitter @geolsoc, or keep in touch with events on our facebook page or blog throughout the week.