Glaciers
8 questions tagged Glaciers — spanning every one of the seven Ws.
Why do mountain valleys often have U-shaped cross sections?
Glaciers widen and deepen valleys much more than rivers do. Their grinding and plucking carve a broad U shape instead of a narrow V.
Why do glaciers leave behind huge rocks in unexpected places?
Glaciers can carry embedded debris long distances and drop it when the ice melts. Those isolated boulders are called glacial erratics.
Why do some glaciers and snowfields survive through summer while nearby slopes melt away?
They survive where snowfall, shading, altitude, and slope shape allow more winter accumulation and less summer melting. In some places, avalanches also feed extra snow into protected basins.
What is a hanging valley?
A hanging valley is a side valley left perched above the main valley floor, often where a tributary stream plunges as a waterfall.
Where is the largest glacier in Europe?
The largest glacier in Europe is the Vatnajökull ice cap in southeast Iceland. It covers about 8,100 square kilometers.
Whose studies first showed that the Alps were shaped by glaciation?
Louis Agassiz was a pioneer in demonstrating that glaciers had once been far more extensive in the Alps and beyond.
How do glaciers carve U-shaped valleys?
Glaciers erode bedrock by plucking and abrasion as they move downhill. Because ice fills the whole valley, it widens and deepens the floor into a broad U shape.
Which glacier is the largest by volume on Earth?
The Lambert Glacier in Antarctica is the largest glacier by volume and drainage area on Earth.