MSc. thesis project suggestions

On this page we will continuously post new suggestions for MSc. thesis projects (GEOR02, 45 credits). The latest suggestions are at the top and posts will be removed as they become obsolete. Contact the main supervisor if you are interested. You can also at any time, based on your own interests, discuss different possibilities with your teachers. You can see examples of previous MSc. theses here. Please note that you have to be admitted to the MSc. programme in geology at Lund University to be able to perform one of the suggested projects.

Restoring the River Syndan, central Sweden – fluvial processes and river appearance prior to anthropogenic modification

Supervisors: Helena Alexanderson (LU) and Gisela Åberg (Malung-Sälen municipality)

Entered: 2024-09-27

The River Syndan in the mountainous area of central Sweden (Dalarna province) has been strongly altered by humans, for example by straightening the stream channels to improve conditions for log driving. Now the plan is to restore the river to something closer to its former state. To do this, detailed knowledge of the hydromorphology and geological processes in the area is needed to understand what the river looked like and which processes dominated prior to human intervention. By taking on this project, you would contribute that knowledge to the municipality that is leading the restoration work.

The thesis work would include geomorphological and geological mapping of the water course and its surroundings, with focus on fluvial features such as meanders, inactive stream channels and deltas, to provide an overview of the fluvial setting and an interpretation of its long-term evolution. Most of the mapping would be done by remote sensing (digital elevation models, existing maps) but complemented by fieldwork for ground-truthing and for more detailed studies of selected areas. The work will be done in collaboration with the Land- and Water Strategist and the Restoration Project Manager at the Malung-Sälen municipality.

MSc thesis projects with the Lund Luminescence Laboratory

Are you interested in chronology? Are you interested in understanding the progression of climate change, in the evolution of civilisations or in reconstructing past extreme storms? Do you love a combination of field work and lab work? At the Lund Luminescence Laboratory, we use a methodology called luminescence dating to address such research questions in diverse, challenging and exciting places such as Svalbard, Egypt, the Carpathian basin, Cyprus and many places in Scandinavia. We have several ongoing research projects to which master students can contribute:

• What does the light (luminescence) from quartz tell us about sediment transport paths and processes?
• What environmental changes took place in SE Europe during the last glacial-interglacial cycle?
• Does human activity change the properties of quartz?
• When did storms and storm surges hit southern Sweden in the past?
• How has the Scanian coast developed through time?
• How has the relative sea level changed on N Svalbard during the Weichselian glacial period?
• Can Egyptian faience be dated?
• Does micro CT imaging destroy ancient objects?
• How old is the oldest writing system in the world?

If any of this sounds interesting, please contact Helena Alexanderson, Amber Hood or Zoran Perić for more information or discussions of potential thesis topics. More information on some of the projects is presented below.

Reconstruction of climatic and environmental changes during the last glacial-interglacial cycle in the Carpathian Basin

Supervisors: Zoran Perić and Helena Alexanderson
Entered: 2024-01-30

Are you interested in revealing the response of terrestrial systems to past climate changes and the behavior of our atmosphere during the last glacial period? Then this project may be for you.

General information

Loess-palaeosol sequences (LPS) and loess-like sediments are considered as some of the most significant terrestrial archives of climatic change and past atmospheric mineral dust activity, not least due to their nearly continuous deposition. Mineral dust plays an important role in the climate system by interacting with radiation, clouds, and biogeochemical cycles. Loess has great importance in reconstruction of the climate in the past and the loess formations of Central Europe display a close relationship with cooling and warming trends of the Northern Hemisphere during the Pleistocene, thereby sensitively recording regional palaeoclimatic and palaeoecological changes. In general, loess is typical of cold and dry, periglacial climate and environment while the intercalated palaeosols are indicators of warmer and more humid climate, representing interstadials or interglacials.

Main project objectives and methods

The master thesis will focus on the reconstruction of climatic changes and determination of the atmospheric dust activity during the last 30 000 years in Europe. In this project you will use luminescence dating to construct absolute chronologies for one site coupled with magnetic susceptibility measurements of the sediments. This will allow us to determine the timing of sediment deposition, calculate the sedimentation rates and identify potential soil development. The results will yield very reliable indicators on the behavior of the atmosphere and the timing of the main cold and warm periods. The study will also provide completely new insights into the palaeoclimatic changes during the late Quaternary  as it will be conducted on thus far uninvestigated sites.

The project will require a sampling field trip to Serbia where the most preserved and complete loess sequences are located. After the sample collection, the focus will be on developing your laboratory skills and gaining basic understanding and expertise in the method of luminescence dating.

Where?

Two uninvestigated sites are available: Vrtište LPS, near the city of Niš in southern Serbia (43° 22′ 13″ S and 21° 48′ 10″ E) and Samoš LPS in the Vojvodina region in northern Serbia (45°12′08″N and 20°46′12″E).

Age and origin of postglacial sediment slumps in Lake Siljan, central Sweden

As part of an ongoing project focussing on the deglaciation dynamics and subsequent lake development of the Siljan region in the county of Dalarna, sediment records from 20-50 m depth in Lake Orsajön have already been obtained. Together with detailed sonar-based bathymetry surveys, these investigations provide evidence of km-sized sediment slumps at great depths that probably took place in the early Holocene. To clarify their timing and triggering processes, similar slump deposits in the even larger and deeper Lake Siljan will be sampled by piston coring in the early spring of 2022. An opportunity for a master thesis project, preferably involving participation in the fieldwork, is offered based on this material. The methods involved will include age determination and age modelling based on radiocarbon dating, lithological and geochemical analyses of lake sediments, as well as interpretation of geophysical data. NOTE: The fieldwork is planned take place during the first week of March, so please let us know as soon as possible if you are interested.

Supervisors: Dan Hammarlund, Per Möller, Karl Ljung
Date added: 2021-12-02
 

Solar storms in a paleoperspective

The recent discovery of abrupt short-term radionuclide production rate increases received considerable attention since they can be related to enormous solar storms (see e.g. https://www.iflscience.com/space/traces-giant-solar-storms-found/ ).  Such an event could have devastating effects on our technological infrastructure today. Significant efforts are nowadays focusing on high-resolution (annual) 14C measurements in tree rings to identify more of such events. However, ice core 10Be and 36Cl records have the potential to (i) increase the possibility for more reliable detection of such strong solar storm events and (ii) characterise such events in terms of number of particles and energy.

The master thesis will focus on the investigation of potential new solar storm events. It will likely involve ice core sampling at the ice core storage in Copenhagen and it will involve 10Be and 36Cl sample preparation at Lund University. The analysis will include an assessment of the likelihood of the identification of new solar storm event and an assessment of its characteristics.

Supervisors: Raimund Muscheler, Florian Mekhaldi
Date added: 2019-01-24

Are you a geology student and interested in archeology and palynology?

Write your thesis within the project "Archeology in Vännebo - a research study"

WHERE?
The lake Vännebosjön is located in Roasjö parish, Svenljunga municipality, Västergötland (approx. 200 km north of Lund). Along its eastern shore, a number of Iron Age metal objects have been found, including gilded horse harness details, weapons and more, that could typically be dated to the Migration Period, ie around AD 400-550.
                        
WHY?
The history of the area is relatively unknown despite its spectacular finds. Therefore, with the help of modern archaeological methodology and interdisciplinary working methods, we want to try to understand the development of the site during prehistoric times in general and the migration period in particular. Was there a settlement adjacent to the place of sacrifice? If so, where was it? When were the possible settlements established and how have the landscape and vegetation changed in the vicinity of the lake during the Middle and Late Iron Age?

HOW?
Pollen analysis of the lake sediments in Vännebosjön, preferably two drill cores - that will be your task!
Other interdisciplinary methods that will be used: soil chemical analyzes, georadar and magnetometer surveys, metal detection.

WHEN?
The goal is to carry out the field work steps (including the pollen analysis) during 2021 and 2022. The time frame is flexible and depending on how the analysis results turn out, the project will be extended.

Supervisors: Karl Ljung, Anne Birgitte Nielsen
In collaboration with archaeologists: Elinor Malmberg, Simon Karlsson, Kulturmiljö, VGR
Date added: 2021-04-16