Geological Society of Glasgow

Building Stones of Central Glasgow
2017-09-13 10:00 - 12:00 (Europe/London) | Scotland
As part of Glasgow’s Doors Open Days festival for 2017, society member Margaret Greene will be leading a short walk around the centre of Glasgow. During the walk, we will look at the stones used to clad the buildings and see which are local stone and which come from further afield, and in doing so learn something of their geology.
Did you know Glasgow is built on rocks 340 million years old? These rocks contained the coal which drove the industrial revolution, and the sandstone which clads many of the buildings, much of which comes from quarries in and around Glasgow. Other cladding comes from further afield, some of it quite exotic. You will also learn a bit about the geology which created these rocks. At the end of your walk you will be given a booklet containing the information you have just heard.
Scott Monument, George Square
The full programme for Glasgow’s Doors Open Days festival can be found here.

The Old Red: Hugh Miller's Geological Legacy
2017-09-09 09:00 - 2017-09-10 17:00 | Scotland
This conference, organised by the Friends of Hugh Miller, is aimed at geologists and palaeontologists internationally, and all who have a general interest in Hugh Miller, fossils and the natural world.
Further information and a booking form can be found here.
Victorial Hall, Cromarty

The Causeway Coast and Glens
2017-09-08 12:00 - 2017-09-11 12:00 | Scotland
Leader: Dr Fiona Meade
Field days: Friday (afternoon)/Saturday/Sunday/Monday (morning)
Beginning around lunchtime on Friday, we plan to explore over 600 million years of geological history exposed the northeast Irish coast of County Antrim, from Portrush to the Giant’s Causeway and Ballintoy Bay. The rocks are superb, with ages ranging through the Precambrian (basement), Dalradian Supergroup, Devonian (puddingstone conglomerate), Carboniferous, Triassic, Jurassic (ammonites, belemnites and bivalves), Cretaceous (chalk and metamorphosed chalk), Tertiary (including, of course, the spectacular North Atlantic Igneous Province (Palaeogene) with its lavas, sills and volcanic plugs. We should finish around lunchtime on Monday.
Logistics/accessibility: Exposures are easily accessible using beaches and coastal paths, with some longer, flat, walks. Access to the visitor centre at the Giant’s Causeway is free to National Trust and NTS members. (Bring your card if you are a member.)
Accommodation will be in B & B and travel in shared cars.
The itinerary for the excursion can be found here.
If you are interested in joining this excursion, please contact the Residential Excursion Secretary, Maggie Donnelly (restrips@gsocg.org).

Solway coast - Southerness to Powillimount
2017-08-19 09:00 - 19:00 | Scotland
Leader: Dr Chris Burton

The coastal section from Southerness to Powillimount within the Kirkbean Outlier forms part of the northern margin of the Solway-Northumbrian Basin which lies between the Southern Uplands to the north and the Lake District to the south. The northern margin of the basin is locally formed by the North Solway Fault, the basin itself being an extensional basin active during the Early Carboniferous (Dinantian). Synsedimentary faulting, downthrowing to the south, combined with cyclical sea-level changes to produce a wide range of sediments from open, shallow marine limestones and mudrocks to floodplain sandstones, silts and coals as the basin-fill developed. Faunas and floras responded to these changing conditions, and the excursion will track these responses and their resulting ecologies, as well as the various sedimentary structures to be seen, and also the tectonic structures imposed on the basin during the Late Carboniferous. Around 2 km of easy coastal walking.

£20 deposit. This is set at a level to recover the anticipated costs of the trip. A small financial adjustment may be made on the bus on the day of the trip.
Leaving Gregory Building at 8:00, returning at 19:00, travelling by coach

Little Glen Shee, Dunkeld
2017-07-29 09:00 - 18:00 | Scotland
Leader: Dr Con Gillen

The excursion is an opportunity to examine Dalradian rocks (slates and grits of the Southern Highland Group) and structures related to the Tay Nappe, a structure that has produced folds at various scales. The area is close to the Highland Boundary Fault and the Highland Border steep belt (or “downbend”’), followed to the north by the flat belt of the structure.
Toilets will be available in Dunkeld at the start and finish of the excursion.
See Excursion 18 in the Stirling & Perth Guide (Browne & Gillen, 2015, EGS).

£20 deposit. This is set at a level to recover the anticipated costs of the trip. A small financial adjustment may be made on the bus on the day of the trip.

Comrie including Highland Boundary Fault and Earthquake House
2017-07-22 09:00 - 18:00 | Scotland
Leader: Dr Simon Cuthbert

Comrie lies on the Highland Boundary Fault and has been called the “Shakin’ Town” because of the frequent seismic activity there, especially during the 19th century. Our visit will focus mainly on the geology in the Grampian block immediately to the north of the fault where we will explore beautifully exposed examples of contact metamorphic changes to the Dalradian Aberfoyle slate adjacent to a late Caledonian diorite intrusion, the Comrie pluton at Craig More. We will visit the famous “Earthquake House” by The Ross, just west of the town and see an early example of a seismometer. In the afternoon we will take a walk from Comrie along Glen Lednock to see the De’il’s Cauldron waterfall where the River Lednock has incised a rock-cut gorge, and finally return to the Comrie pluton to examine the igneous rocks themselves and their contact relations with the country-rocks. Comrie has some excellent opportunities for cake, and if we are not too long delayed on the rocks we may wish to explore these, too! The trip will involve a few kilometres of variably rough and boggy walking, sometimes quite steep for short intervals.

£20 deposit. This is set at a level to recover the anticipated costs of the trip. A small financial adjustment may be made on the bus on the day of the trip.
Leaving Gregory Building at 9:00, returning at 18:00, travelling by coach

Glasgow Museums Resource Centre
2017-06-24 10:30 - 12:30 | Scotland
Leader: Ann Ainsworth

This morning excursion is a guided tour of the Glasgow Museums Resource Centre. Museum staff will be showing us some of the many items in the geology collection which are not on public display. Because of restricted space within the building, numbers will be limited to 15 but, in the event of higher demand, a further trip will be offered on another occasion.

There will be no charge for this excursion.
Meet at 10:15 at the Glasgow Museums Resource Centre, 200 Woodhead Road, South Nitshill Industrial Estate, Glasgow G53 7NN. The centre is about 5 minutes walk from Nitshill railway station.

Tyndrum/Glen Orchy
2017-06-10 09:00 - 18:00 | Scotland
Leader: Dr Iain Allison

We will visit the former lead mine some 1 km west of and 150 m above Tyndrum Lower station and examine the mineralisation and the country rocks into which it was emplaced. The mineralisation consists of mainly vein quartz with sphalerite and galena. Other minerals which may be found are: chalcopyrite, pyrite, barite, and calcite. In the afternoon we shall make four stops along a generally level path in Glen Orchy where we shall see the Meall Garbh Psammite of the (lower) Grampian Group and the overlying Beinn Udlaidh Quartzite and Coire Daimh Pelite of the Appin Group.

£20 deposit. This is set at a level to recover the anticipated costs of the trip. A small financial adjustment may be made on the bus on the day of the trip.
Leaving Gregory Building at 9:00, returning at 18:00, travelling by coach

Kilewnan Burn and Dunmore from Fintry village
2017-06-03 09:00 - 19:00 | Scotland
Joint Excursion with the Edinburgh Geological Society

Leader: Dr Con Gillen

Walk on footpaths, 4km total; hill ascent to 250m; walk along stream section; visit to old quarry. Walk to and along Kilewnan Burn. Walk up hill to top of Dunmore, then downhill and across hillside slope towards Fintry quarry.
The Fintry Hills are part of the Clyde Plateau Volcanic Formation to the south-west of Stirling, and show good examples of varied basaltic igneous rocks that formed close to eruptive centres, in a landscape of craters and cinder cones. As well as the igneous rocks, we shall also be looking at Carboniferous sedimentary rocks of the Clyde Sandstone Formation and the Ballagan Beds (cement stones).
Toilets will be available in Fintry at the start and finish of the excursion.
The excursion will be followed by high tea at the Fintry Sports and Recreation Club, in company with our Edinburgh colleagues.
See Excursion 10 in the Stirling & Perth Guide (Browne & Gillen, 2015, EGS).

£30 deposit. This is set at a level to recover the anticipated costs of the trip and also the cost of the high tea. This is set at a level to recover the anticipated costs of the trip. A small financial adjustment may be made on the bus on the day of the trip.
Leaving Gregory Building at 9:00, returning at 19:00, travelling by coach

Members' Night
2017-05-11 19:30 - 21:30 | Scotland
The last evening meeting of the session consists of a series of short oral presentations by society members, followed by desktop presentations, nibbles and drinks.
The oral presentations will be as follows:
Joan Walsh – Identification of Scottish slates
Simon Cuthbert – Conserving Nature’s stage – geodiversity for the bewildered
Margaret Greene – Geodiversity
David Jarman – The Romanian Carpathians – range destruction by rock slope failure
Each talk, including questions, will last for a maximum of 15 minutes.
Any display material, including laptop slideshows and posters, that members would like to bring to contribute to the desktop presentations will be very welcome.
This meeting will be held in the Alexander Stone Building (Lecture Theatre, Room 208) in University Gardens and not in the Gregory Building. The Alexander Stone Building is diagonally across University Gardens from the Gregory Building, just beyond the Queen Margaret Union, and is about 100 m from the Gregory Building.

Morvern & Ardgour, Lochaber
2017-05-05 12:00 - 2017-05-08 12:00 | Scotland
Leader: Jim Blair, Lochaber Geoconservation
Field days: Friday/Saturday/Sunday/Monday
We hope to be based in the Ardgour area where we would have access to Morvern and Ardgour. We could meet at the Tourist Info Centre (beside the Ballachulish Slate Quarry) perhaps, at 11.30 am/12 noon, with road stops to see Strontian granite, Moine rocks, perhaps the Ballachulish Slide & the Lochaline working silica mine (has to be a weekday after 4.30 pm, wellington boots, hard hats, high vis jackets required). Over the weekend we also hope to see lavas from the Mull volcano in Morvern, Tennyson’s waterfall (off the lavas), Jurassic fossil beds at Lochaline, a possible P/T Boundary, an unconformity between Moine/Devonian and another between Moine and Permo/Trias, hopefully an old lead mine and other things!
Travel will be by shared private cars – less expensive and better than a coach on single track roads.
This is the second weekend on which this excursion is being run. The first weekend, April 21 to April 24, is now fully booked, but there are still places available for this second weekend. If you are interested in joining this second excursion, please contact restrips@gsocg.org as soon as possible.

Morvern & Ardgour, Lochaber
2017-04-21 12:00 - 2017-04-24 12:00 | Scotland
Leader: Jim Blair, Lochaber Geoconservation
Field days: Friday/Saturday/Sunday/Monday
We hope to be based in the Ardgour area where we would have access to Morvern and Ardgour. We could meet at the Tourist Info Centre (beside the Ballachulish Slate Quarry) perhaps, at 11.30 am/12 noon, with road stops to see Strontian granite, Moine rocks, perhaps the Ballachulish Slide & the Lochaline working silica mine (has to be a weekday after 4.30 pm, wellington boots, hard hats, high vis jackets required). Over the weekend we also hope to see lavas from the Mull volcano in Morvern, Tennyson’s waterfall (off the lavas), Jurassic fossil beds at Lochaline, a possible P/T Boundary, an unconformity between Moine/Devonian and another between Moine and Permo/Trias, hopefully an old lead mine and other things!
Travel will be by shared private cars – less expensive and better than a coach on single track roads.
The logistics of this excursion require the number in the party to be limited to 20, and this weekend is now fully booked. However, because of the interest in the excursion, it is being run again on a second weekend, May 5 to May 8 2017. If you are interested in joining this second excursion, please contact restrips@gsocg.org as soon as possible.

An alternative fossil record: evidence for a deep biosphere in Scotland’s past (lecture)
2017-04-20 19:30 - 21:30 | Lecture Theatre, Gregory Building, c/o School of Geographical & Earth Sciences, Glasgow, Glasgow City, G12 8QQ, United Kingdom
Professor John Parnell, School of Geosciences, University of Aberdeen
Scotland has numerous fossil deposits of international importance for their contribution to understanding the evolution of life. However, the story of life on Earth is largely subsurface: only since the evolution of land plants in the last 10% of Earth’s history has the locus of biomass shifted to the planetary surface.
Over the last two decades, the life sciences community has recorded a huge body of evidence for a global subsurface biosphere extending today to several kilometres depth. Scotland offers strong potential for the study of this deep biosphere in the geological record, using a range of evidence such as organic biomarker evidence for subsurface biodegradation; isotopic evidence for microbial colonization in the subsurface; metal concentrations in red beds attributed to bacteria; and preservation of microbial filaments in fracture-fill vein minerals. We will look at examples of this evidence from Scotland, and put them in a wider context of planetary habitat.
Further reading

McMahon, S. & Parnell, J. 2014. Weighing the deep continental biosphere. FEMS Microbiology Ecology, 87, 113-120.

Please note that this meeting will be held on the third Thursday of April and not on the usual second Thursday.

Scotland: Living on the Edge (lecture)
2017-04-12 19:30 - 21:30 | Scotland
Professor Iain Stewart, Professor of Geoscience Communication at Plymouth University
Find out how ‘tartan geology’ has influenced geological thinking, past, present and future.
Lecture Theatre (Main Assembly Hall)
Millburn Academy
Diriebught Road
Inverness
IV2 3QR

Non-members welcome – admission charge £5
To book a place at the lecture please contact Alison Wright at a.j.wright00@aberdeen.ac.uk.

This event is organised by the Highland Geological Society. You can find out more about the society here.

Extremely rare isotope metrology @ SUERC (lecture)
2017-03-09 19:30 - 21:30 | Lecture Theatre, Gregory Building, c/o School of Geographical & Earth Sciences, Glasgow, Glasgow City, G12 8QQ, United Kingdom
Dr Derek Fabel, University of Glasgow
Precise and accurate measurement of isotopes in minerals and rocks is key to understanding the Earth. Radiometric dating is the principal source of information about the absolute age of rocks and other geological features, or the age of the Earth itself, and together with stratigraphic principles, has been fundamental in establishing the geological time scale. Stable isotope analysis supports research in applied minerals, geological hazards, environmental change, pollution, hydrology, human-landscape interactions, and biological evolution. The procedures used to isolate and analyse isotopes involves isotope ratio mass spectrometry in a variety of forms depending on the isotopic system being utilised. Radiocarbon and surface exposure dating rely on being able to measure the abundance of extremely rare radioisotopes in the sample material using a technique called accelerator mass spectrometry. This presentation will take you behind the scene of extremely rare isotope metrology at SUERC (Scottish Universities Environment Research Centre) to illustrate the complexity and effort involved in making these types of measurements.

Strathclyde Geoconservation Group meeting
2017-02-23 19:30 - 21:30 | Lecture Theatre, Gregory Building, c/o School of Geographical & Earth Sciences, Glasgow, Glasgow City, G12 8QQ, United Kingdom
Anyone interested in geoconservation is invited to attend this meeting. More information about the Strathclyde Geoconservation Group can be found here.

Making better use of the ground beneath our cities; the Glasgow experience is that it helps to ASK... (lecture)
2017-02-09 19:30 - 21:30 | Lecture Theatre, Gregory Building, c/o School of Geographical & Earth Sciences, Glasgow, Glasgow City, G12 8QQ, United Kingdom
Dr Diarmad Campbell, British Geological Survey
Knowledge of the subsurface is a vital element in delivering successful construction and regeneration projects — yet poor understanding of ground conditions is widely recognised across the UK and Europe as the largest single cause of project delay, as well as overspending. To help address this, the British Geological Survey (BGS) has, through its Clyde-Urban Super-Project (CUSP), developed highly visual, and easy to use, city-scale 3D subsurface models and other geoscience datasets (geochemistry, groundwater, engineering geology etc.) in the Glasgow area. These have been providing new insights into Glasgow’s complex superficial deposits and bedrock, the impacts of its industrial legacy, and opportunities for harnessing heat energy that lies beneath the city. Glasgow City Council (GCC) has been a key strategic partner throughout this work, as have many others involved in the development and regeneration of Glasgow. The models are the most comprehensive of their type yet produced in the UK. To make the models and related data more accessible, and to encourage greater use and re-use, of subsurface information, BGS and GCC have established ASK (Accessing Subsurface Knowledge). ASK is a data and knowledge exchange network involving local and regulatory authorities, private developers and their consultants and contractors, and researchers. ASK promotes a digital free flow of subsurface data and knowledge between its partners, for their mutual benefit. The lessons being learnt in Glasgow are also now being shared more widely through a related European COST Action (Sub-Urban) which focuses on sustainable use of the urban subsurface.

Meeting the Challenge: Geological Disposal of UK higher activity radioactive waste (lecture)
2017-02-07 18:00 - 20:00 | Column 2 Content
The UK has substantial volumes of so-called ‘legacy’ wastes arising from its weapons programme, from its various experimental reactor programmes, from nuclear power plants and from the reprocessing of spent fuel. Professor Becky Lunn believes society has a moral obligation to provide a long-term secure solution for these wastes. This talk will discuss the technical and societal challenges that must be overcome for successful construction of a geological disposal facility in the UK.
Professor Lunn researches the development and implementation of engineered barriers for nuclear decommissioning and waste disposal, for which she has received national recognition and prestigious awards. She has been a long-term member of several UK and Scottish Government Independent Advisory Committees on topics ranging from Geothermal Energy Prospects to Radioactive Waste Management. She leads two multi-partner research consortia in nuclear waste disposal and decommissioning. In 2015, she was elected an Outstanding Woman of Scotland by the Saltire Society for her contributions to research and for her support for women in engineering.
This meeting is organised by IESIS (Institution of Engineers and Shipbuilders in Scotland). More details of the meeting and registration instructions can be found here.
Lecture Theatre 301, McCance Building, Strathclyde University, Richmond Street, Glasgow, G1 1XQ

Scotland's Jurassic Park: the Isle of Skye and new fossil discoveries by the PalAlba group (lecture)
2017-01-12 19:30 - 21:30 | Lecture Theatre, Gregory Building, c/o School of Geographical & Earth Sciences, Glasgow, Glasgow City, G12 8QQ, United Kingdom
Dr Stephen Brusatte, Chancellor’s Fellow, University of Edinburgh
Believe it or not, you can find dinosaurs in Scotland. And these dinosaurs turn out to be important on an international scale. The Isle of Skye is one of the few places in the world that preserves fossils of dinosaurs, crocodiles, lizards, turtles, and even tiny mammals from the middle part of the Jurassic period, about 170 million years ago. Over the last few years the PalAlba team – a collaborative group of Scottish palaeontologists – has been conducting fieldwork on the Isle of Skye. This talk will explain the importance of the Isle of Skye fossils and describe new discoveries made by the PalAlba team, including a remarkable dinosaur tracksite left by colossal long-necked dinosaurs moving through an ancient lagoon.

Planet Earth's mid-life crisis: carbon isotopes, concretions and the "Great Oxidation Event" (lecture)
2016-12-08 19:30 - 21:30 | Lecture Theatre, Gregory Building, c/o School of Geographical & Earth Sciences, Glasgow, Glasgow City, G12 8QQ, United Kingdom
Professor Tony Fallick, Scottish Universities Environmental Research Centre
Around 2.2 billion years ago, the Earth experienced a series of dramatic upheavals which accompanied the transition from a reducing to an oxidising ocean/atmosphere system. The global carbon cycle was perturbed to an extent unparalleled before or since, with the changes documented in the stable carbon isotope record of carbonate (?13Ccarb). From concretions in sediments, there is evidence that the manner in which organic matter is remineralised under- went radical change. However, the exact sequence of events leading to this “greatest pollution event of all time” (Lovelock) is not yet clear, and several aspects are paradoxical. It is an open question whether there was one or several excursions to high (?13Ccarb); the end of the high ?13C record is reasonably well-established at 2056 ± 6 Ma, but its inception is not well defined, so that only a minimum duration (~ 140 My) is known. The interplay of the records of oxidised carbon (as carbonate) and reduced carbon (as organic matter) is especially problematic. Recent drilling in Arctic Russia by the International Continental Scientific Drilling Program FAR-DEEP Consortium has produced a marvellous new archive of 3.6 km of drillcore with which these and other issues are being addressed.
The lecture will be preceded by the society’s AGM and followed by the traditional Christmas social, with nibbles and drinks.

Cave deposits (speleothems) as archives of past environments and climates (lecture)
2016-11-10 19:30 - 21:30 | Lecture Theatre, Gregory Building, c/o School of Geographical & Earth Sciences, Glasgow, Glasgow City, G12 8QQ, United Kingdom
Professor Ian Fairchild, Professor of Geosystems, University of Birmingham
A clear understanding of long-term climatic change over the Quaternary has come primarily through studies of sediments in the deep ocean and cores through the major ice sheets, forming a framework to which the myriad more fragmentary and less definitive records can be related. Caves used to be thought of as complex environments unlikely to yield records of widespread significance. The search for better climate proxies on land, as well as a series of advances in technology has transformed this situation so that well-dated speleothem records now provide definitive records of regional to global environmental change.
In this talk, an introduction to Quaternary palaeoclimates is followed by a discussion of how caves function (they have a “physiology”!) and the manner of formation of speleothems. Next we consider the many properties that speleothems display that may be modified depending on an interaction of climate with the cave and karst system. The crucial role of good dating of the archives is illustrated with a discussion of uranium-thorium radiometric dating combined with counting of annual layers. Finally, some case examples are used as illustrations of the varied ways in which past climates and environments have been brought to life by studying the underworld.

Local Geoconservation Workshop, Edinburgh
2016-10-29 10:00 - 13:00 | Scotland
This event will allow participants to discuss issues around conservation and education and will seek to share good practice in recording the details of sites.
Following an introduction about Local Geodiversity Sites, a field trip to Hermitage of Braid and Blackford Hill Local Geodiversity Site will take place.
Meet at Morningside Library, 184-186 Morningside Rd, Edinburgh EH10 4PU.
Please contact Angus Miller chair@scottishgeodiversityforum.org if you would like to attend this free event.

UK-wide Geoconservation Annual Gathering, Edinburgh
2016-10-28 13:30 - 17:30 | Edinburgh Methodist Church Halls, 25 Nicolson Square, Edinburgh, EH8 9BX, United Kingdom
This is an event for members of geoconservation groups and all involved in local sites across the UK, and for earth scientists interested in becoming involved in geoconservation.
The Gathering will focus on local, practical geoconservation, and will allow participants to learn more about local sites, consider case studies including Geodiversity Audits and the designation of Local Geodiversity Sites, and meet others who help monitor and celebrate local sites.
Lesley Dunlop, Chair of the GeoConservation UK, and Colin MacFadyen of SNH will be among those making presentations, to be followed by discussion groups around current issues and case studies.
At 12 noon the GeoConservation UK AGM will take place. Following the Gathering which runs from 13.30 to 17.30, there will be a Civic Reception at 18.00.
Further information is available from the Geological Society of London although please note update re venue, and from the Scottish Geodiversity Forum.
Free event but to book a place at this popular event, contact reception@geolsoc.org.uk.

The Great Dying: what happened 250 million years ago? (lecture)
2016-10-13 19:30 - 21:30 | Lecture Theatre, Gregory Building, c/o School of Geographical & Earth Sciences, Glasgow, Glasgow City, G12 8QQ, United Kingdom
Professor Rachel Wood, Chair of Carbonate Geoscience, University of Edinburgh
About 250 million years ago Earth saw the greatest mass extinction known, where over 90% of all marine life disappeared. What was the cause of this, and can we quantify its effects? More importantly, does this shed any light on what is happening in our seas today?

Earth Science Week at North West Highlands Geopark
2016-10-08 12:00 - 2016-10-15 16:30 | Column 1
North West Highlands Geopark is holding a series of events during Earth Science Week, which runs from October 8th until October 16th. The full programme can be found here.
Earth Science Week is organised by the Geological Society. More details can be found here.

Balmaha
2016-10-02 10:00 - 17:00 | Scotland
Joint excursion with the Geologists’ Association
Leaders: Dr Chris Burton & Dr Simon Cuthbert
The Geologists’ Association (in London) are visiting Glasgow for a “behind the scenes” visit to the Glasgow Museums Resource Centre. They have asked that we assist them with organising a local field trip and we have suggested a joint trip to Balmaha to examine the Highland Border Complex which here has great diversity in lithologies. We will also examine both the Lower and Upper Old Red Sandstone rocks with a view to determining the nature of their accumulation and provenance.
Their group size is normally 20 to 25, comprising older/retired adults with a keen interest in geology, although varied levels of knowledge. We think this would be a good opportunity to meet some fellow enthusiasts.
Could you please note that the original plan to have high tea in the Oak Tree Inn has had to be cancelled? (The inn will be too busy to cater for our group because of a festival taking place in Balmaha on the weekend of the excursion.)
There will be no charge for this excursion.
Meet Geologists’ Association group in Forestry Commission car park at Balmaha at 10:00.
This excursion is now fully booked.

Dynamic Earth October programme
2016-10-01 11:00 - 2016-10-23 16:00 | Dynamic Earth, Holyrood Road, Edinburgh, EH8 8AS, United Kingdom
Dynamic Earth, the Edinburgh centre for geological exhibits, has a varied and interesting programme of events scheduled for October. The programme can be seen here.

North-east Ireland
2016-09-02 09:00 - 2016-09-05 18:00 | Scotland
This trip will explore the British and Irish Palaeogene Igneous Province surrounding Carlingford Lough at Slieve Gullion, Carlingford and Mourne, including a range of volcanic features, from a caldera-forming ring complex to spectacular cone-sheets. We will see a variety of igneous rock types, including basalt, rhyolite, gabbro and granite and explore the textures that form during magma mixing. We will also look at some of the regional geology, including the local Silurian metasedimentary rocks, formed on the floor of the Iapetus Ocean and deformed during the Caledonian Orogeny, when northern and southern Ireland became joined together. We will see the effect the hot magmas had on these rocks, baking and melting them around the intrusions. More details and some pictures can be seen here.
There are still places available on this trip; if you would like to join it, or wish to have further details, please email the residential excursion secretary.
The price will be announced when the numbers are known and the accommodation arranged.
We will travel by private car and ferry, in order to keep costs to a minimum. Accommodation will be B&B in the Carlingford area (3 nights).

A Celebration of the Falls of Clyde
2016-08-20 09:30 - 2016-08-21 16:30 | Flexible content blocks
The Falls of Clyde Heritage Group is staging a weekend of talks and guided walks about the Falls of Clyde.
(Photo: W. Gray)
Saturday August 20. A one-day conference takes place on Saturday and booking is required for this. The conference consists of a series of talks and discussions about the Falls of Clyde in the morning, followed by guided walks in the afternoon.
Sunday August 21. A drop-in day. Members of the public can drop-in to listen to talks and to join the guided walks. Booking is not required for this.
The talks by experts in their field will cover the rich diversity that the Falls of Clyde have to offer, including: the Geology of the Falls of Clyde (Saturday only), the Falls of Clyde as a Designed Landscape, Artists and the Falls of Clyde, and the role of Waterfalls in early Tourism. Discussions will include the future protection and enhancement of the Falls.
Guided walking tours include the Secrets of the Falls (which will take participants beyond the waterfalls to see the View House and the designed landscape), and to the historic ruin of Boathaugh, home of the 18th century traveller, “Lugless Wull”.
On Sunday there will also be an opportunity to see inside the Bonnington Hydro-electric Station.
The full programme for the weekend and details of how to book for the Saturday can be found here.

Fossil Hunters: Unearthing the Mystery of Life on Land (exhibition at the National Museum of Scotland)
2016-08-14 10:00 - 17:00 | National Museum of Scotland, Chambers Street, Edinburgh, EH1 1JF, United Kingdom
This is an exhibition about recently located Scottish fossils and the people who found them.
In 2008, the late Stan Wood uncovered fossils in SE Scotland revealing important information about the development of land vertebrate life. The exhibition features finds, including some very recent ones, which provide an insight into an ancient ecosystem and help tell the story of the ‘move’ made by vertebrates from water onto land 360-345 million years ago, starting to close the enigmatic gap in the fossil record known as Romer’s Gap.
Find out more about the exhibition here, and about Romer’s Gap here.
Entry is free.
