Abstract
The upper 5–10 km of the lithosphere is sensitive to slight changes (<0.1 MPa) in local stress caused by differential loading, fluid flow, the mechanical transfer of strain between faults, and viscoelastic relaxation in the aesthenosphere. Lithospheric stresses induced by mass and fluid transfers associated with Quaternary ice sheets affected the tectonic regimes of stable cratons and active plate margins. In the latter case, it is difficult to differentiate glacially induced fault displacements from nonglacial ones, particularly if residual glacial stresses are considered. Glaciotectonics, a sub-subdiscipline within Quaternary geology is historically focussed on reconstructing past glacier regimes and, by definition, does not include these effects. The term “glacial tectonics” is hereby suggested for investigations focussed on the past and continuing influences of ice sheets on contemporary tectonics.
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