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BBC Northwest Tonight November 2023. Well done Lis!

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Visit our interactive online locality map to see what we are on about!
https://padlet.com/wirralgeology/LocationMap

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NOT all the Triassic Sandstone is the Same! 

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NOT all the Triassic Sandstone is the Same! 

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The Triassic sedimentary rocks on the Wirral have a number of different Formations (thick layers) which have very different resistance to weathering and erosion - and give rise to our varied countryside. (You need to zoom in on the Geology of Britain viewer to see the different units.

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This site and it's sister ones have been set up by  Jim Marshall.
Jim is a retired geologist - officially Emeritus Professor of Geology at the University of Liverpool: A two-time Director of the Geology and Physical Geography degree programmes  he has only recently  started to find out more about our local landscape and try to enthuse others too!
He is Past-President of the LGS and very keen to increase local participation.

Please give us your feedback - and contribute to the development of these pages.

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The big white lump of granite was brought here by the Irish Sea ice sheet , most probably from Scotland.
There is more information on our Location Map - https://padlet.com/wirralgeology/LocationMap
Hopefully we'll have a summary of the effects of glaciation here soon too!

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Holocene Dunes and Sea Defences. Leasowe Lighthouse

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Holocene Dunes and Sea Defences. Leasowe Lighthouse

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Much of our coastal plain would be regularly flooded aby storms and tides. Construction of coastal defences provide considerable challenges for Engineering Geologists!

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Thin resistant sandstone beds within the generally 'soft' Wilmslow Sandstone Formation form convenient sites for chair and pathways

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Thin resistant sandstone beds within the generally 'soft' Wilmslow Sandstone Formation form convenient sites for chair and pathways

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Caldy Hill

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The Breck - historic quarry in Triassic Helsby Sandstone displays cross bedding produced by migration of tabular bars in a braided river environment.

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Ask questions.
Let us know what you  think.
WirralGeology@gmail.com

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Do you want to understand more about our local landscape?  

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Do you want to understand more about our local landscape?  

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Follow the line on the GoogleEarth image below or pick your own.
The pink topographic profile across the Wirral was produced using GoogleEarth pro (downloaded for free!) is highly exaggerated (think cycling!). It roughly follows the 437 bus route and crosses landscapes produced by -  Triassic sandstones and mudstones (at least 4 stratigraphic units), deep valleys cut by Glacial ice - and part-filled with debris they left behind and, more recent, Holocene sands and mud. (A second profile - to more proper vertical scale lies below).

For more information why not join our mailing list -  WirralGeology@gmail.com

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Deep seated fault lines controls the distribution of  'harder' - more resistant sandstones across the Wirral. 

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Deep seated fault lines controls the distribution of  'harder' - more resistant sandstones across the Wirral. 

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Note how many of our 'beauty spot' escarpments including  Bidston Hill,  Grange Hill in West Kirby, and Heswall Hills are produced where the relatively soft Wilmslow Sandstone is overlain by the more resistant Helsby Sandstone Formation.
Faulting brings the same unit geological contact to the surface.

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This page and the sister sites are very much 'work in progress'.
They are  products of a long gestation period and a sudden flurry of activity over a much quieter-than-usual Christmas period!
We are planning to upload further links to published resources - online and in print - and will, no doubt post more and better pictures of our wonderful landscape (and rocks!)
What would you like to see here.?

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Is under development. We hope to add much, more!

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This computer-generated image by John Kavanagh* brings the landcape of the Wirral and central Liverpool into relief. It highlights our vulnerability to sea level change and the need for our sea defences.
The higher land is revealed as separate blocks dissected by deeper trenches.  Probe further with us: as we study the landscape patterns, the maps and the borehole records.  = You will start to understand how the modern landscape has been produced by ancient deserts and rivers, tectonic faults, glacial erosion and deposition, climate change and sea-level rise.  (JohnK & JimM 12/20)
(*Geologist - University of Liverpool)

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Our landscape continues to evolve. Sediment accumulation leads to the development of tidal flats and salt marsh habitats for wildlife.

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Has long established degree programmes in Geology,
Geology & Physical Geography
and Geography.
Staff and students research global scientific problems.
Our Graduates are employed across the world finding new resources. guiding construction projects and solving environmental problems. Continuing Education Courses include Geology.

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The LGS is for amateurs and professionals alike. We have an active programme of lectures throughout the colder months (on Zoom these days!)  and, in good times, run field trips locally and further afield
Why not join us? https://liverpoolgeologicalsociety.org/

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To encourage wider understanding and appreciation of the local landscape and its history.

To promote local research and collaboration with others -  including archaeologists, historians and civil societies.

To  produce and disseminate information -  booklets, guided walks and talks are on the potential menu!

email us at
WirralGeology@gmail.com
to receive our news!

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Use the BGS - 'Geology of Britain Viewer'

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Use the BGS - 'Geology of Britain Viewer'

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https://geologyviewer.bgs.ac.uk
The 'Geology of Britain Viewer' from the British  Geological Survey is probably the easiest way for you to investigate  the Geology beneath your feet. You can zoom in to a location and click on it to get basic information about the rock unit, its age and environmental setting.
As with paper maps: the geological map and the geological information become more detailed at higher magnification  levels. At low resolution all the Triassic sandstones on the Wirral are mapped as one colour. Zoom in to see the different Formations which have such an important impact on our landscape.
On the left hand side you can switch between a view of Bedrock Geology (solid rocks), or incorporate Superficial Geology (glacial and coastal deposits). The 'transparency' control on the right enables you to see more or less of the underlying road map.  You are able to display the location of boreholes (click to see the archived records)  and highlight features like fault lines and coal seams .
Users of conventional geological maps and readers of older books might find it frustrating that the BGS has moved away from old familiar names for rock units. The 'geology key' facility is useful to explain all the colours on the map - but unlike conventional maps the units are not displayed in stratigraphic order.
Fear not! - the BGS has made all of its conventional maps available to view online .  The 2006 editions of Sheet 96 - 'Bedrock' and 'Bedrock and Superficial'  cover central Liverpool and the Wirral (search BGS Maps Portal for all current and historical maps). They are superb updates on the previous editions (which were based on century old surveys!) - Paper copies can be purchased too.
(JimM 12/20)

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This high resolution digital image by Prof. Richard Chiverrell* reveals landscape features created both by nature and by human activity.
Valleys created by an ice sheet  cut through the geology and host modern estuaries and - on land - control our land use.
Spot the path of railways, major roads, docks and even waste tips!  Think about the way in which the physical landscape influences agriculture,  industry,  housing and leisure facilities.
(RichC and JimM 12/20)
(*Physical Geographer & Glacial Geomorphologist, University of Liverpool)

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The unstable cliffs expose glacial till - deposited when the last ice-sheets left the area around 19,000 years ago. 

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Fault rocks at Thurstaston Hill