> > Bob W wrote: > > > My house is at the apex (?) of the large oxbow in the centre of the > > picture. > > Dude, without even looking at the photo, you're toast. Oxbows might > even be worse than alluvial plains (I think that's the term) for > flooding. If you're going to live next to a river, make it a > young one > rather than an old one. Though I'd be surprised if there > were very many > young rivers in Jolly Old Blighty. :-) > > When /was/ the last mountain building phase that affected the > British Isles? >
Long time ago and a long way from here! The biggest mountains were (and still are) in Scotland. They were bigger than the Himalayas, apparently, but have got a bit worn down now. Too many Munro Baggers trampling all over them, I expect. Northern Scitland was part of the North American landmass, but floated off and eventually bumped into the top of Europe, raising the mountains. Most of the rest of the lumpy bits are glacial, or downland, I think. Geology is not one of my subjects, so I could be completely wrong. The Thames itself used to flow out much further north than it does today, onto the plain (Doggerland) that is now the North Sea, where it joined the Rhine and became part of a huge river system that flowed down the Channel valley. When the glaciers melted and sea levels rose the river moved south to its present route and the North Sea filled up. Eventually the North Sea breached or overtopped the 'plug' near Dover that kept the sea out of the Channel, causing a megaflood and turning Britain into an island. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/6904675.stm So even if my house floods, things can always get worse. Bob -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net
