Learn about the Ice Age Floods at this presentation series
Cover photo courtesy of the Ice Age Floods Institute
This is the second year in a row that Spokane County Library District has featured presentations from the local chapter of the Ice Age Floods Institute (IAFI). This year’s presentations cover all-new topics. Pre-registration is required.
Mapping the Pacific Northwest’s Glacial Legacy
Glaciers have shaped much of the Pacific Northwest’s landscape over the past 15,000 years. The Cordilleran ice sheet, repeated ice age floods, and expansive alpine glaciation have left their distinctive fingerprints on the topography of our region. Geologists and cartographers have been mapping and interpreting glacial landforms since the late 19th century. In the past decade, the Washington Geological Survey has created new maps that build upon this rich cartographic history by fusing older datasets and techniques with modern insights and technology, such as lidar. Using both historical and modern maps, this presentation by Daniel Coe with the Washington Geologic Survey will be a visual journey through the Pacific Northwest’s glacial past and present at the Cheney Library on Tuesday, April 15 from 6:30–7:30 p.m.
How the Ice Age Floods Changed the Course of the Palouse River
Before the Ice Age Floods, the Palouse River would have flowed through present day Washtucna, Kahlotus, Connell, Mesa, and Eltopia before entering the Columbia River near the Pasco Airport. Today, it takes a fifty-mile shortcut to the Snake River at Lyons Ferry via the Palouse Canyon and Palouse Falls. In this presentation, we look at the two factors that caused this dramatic shift—either one by itself would not have been enough. To examine when this happened, we look at some possibilities and clues recently discovered by scientists. The presentation by Lloyd Stoess, president of the Palouse Falls Chapter of IAFI, will be at the Moran Prairie Library on Monday, April 28, from 6:30–7:30 p.m.
How Do They Know? Major Findings about the Ice Age Floods
Have you ever been watching a science program and wondered, “How do they know that?” This presentation by IAFI president Dr. Gary L. Ford will cover how and who “figured it out” regarding aspects of the Ice Age Floods looking at five questions. These include how we know there was a huge glacial lake in western Montana thousands of years ago, how we know it drained rapidly perhaps a hundred times, about how many floods there were and when they occurred, where the floodwater came from, and about how long it took the floodwater to get to the ocean. The presentation at the Spokane Valley Library on Wednesday, May 14, from 6–7:30 p.m. will also go over which answers to these questions are still being debated by researchers. (Spokane County Library District)
