Dr Michael Cooper
Research Associate

Profile

Biography

Prior to joining the University of York (in September 2019), Michael undertook his PhD research at the University of Bristol. He is a glaciologist, with particular research interest in the role of the subglacial environment upon changing glacial dynamics (mainly ice-sheets), and vice versa. This research has also extended to the expression of basal controls at the ice surface. Michael has a background in the use of radio-echo sounding data (RES; or ice penetrating radar (IPR)) to explore basal characteristics including the mapping presence of water (and basal thermal state); quantification of subglacial roughness; and, the nature of bed lithology (and the presence of sediment).

At York, Michael is working under a Leverhulme Trust funded project regarding the use of archival photography (pre-‘satellite era,’ i.e., pre-1970s) in order to back-extend the glaciological record for polar regions. Principally, this research is concerned with mapping historic glacial extent, as well as assessing long-term glacial volumetric changes, and changing trends, dating back to the 1930s.