Glaciers

• A GLACIER forms when yearly snowfall in a region far exceeds the amount of snow and ice that melts during the summer months.

• Most of the world's glaciers are found near the Poles, but glaciers exist on all of the world's continents, even Africa. Only, Australia doesn't have any glaciers!

Types of GlaciersGlaciers can be characterized in two ways based on their formation: alpine and continental.Alpine Glacier - Most glaciers that form in a mountain are known as alpine glaciers. Continental Glacier – An expansive, continuous mass of ice considerably bigger than an alpine glacier is known asa continental glacier.

Anatomy of a Glacier

Zone of Accumulation Zone of Ablation Terminus

Anatomy of a Glacier

• "COOL" animations

Glaciers and the Environment• http://dsc.discovery.com/videos/discovery-project-earth-

jakobshaven-glacier-retreat.html• The common fear is that with temperatures rising worldwide,

glaciers will begin to melt, releasing some or all of the huge amounts of water held inside. As a result, the oceanic processes and structures we have adapted to will abruptly change, with unknown consequences.

• To find out more, scientists are turning to paleoclimatology, a field of study that uses glacial deposits, fossils, and sediments to determine the history of earth's climate. Ice cores from Greenland and Antarctica are currently being used to this end.

• http://dsc.discovery.com/videos/discovery-project-earth-wrapping-glaciers-in-a-nutshell.html

Continental Glacial Land Formations

Drumlins

• Glacial moraine (sand, silt, pebbles, boulders,…) that’s dumped.

• Therefore it’s unsorted material (all different sizes)

Glacial Streams - can wash away sand and small rocks,

- aren’t powerful enough to wash out bigger material (ie. boulders)

Eskers

• Long, sandy hills that snake through the landscape

• Were once glacial streams that filled with sand.

Erratics

• As they moved forward, ice sheets often picked up large rocks and carried them hundreds of kilometres

• They can be identified because they are made of rock which is different from the bedrock of the region in which they are deposited

Erratic:Erratic:How did this rock get like this?How did this rock get like this?

Copyright © 2010 Ryan P. Murphy

Answer: Our next area of Focus.

Copyright © 2010 Ryan P. Murphy

Answer: Our next area of Focus.

Copyright © 2010 Ryan P. Murphy

Answer: Our next area of Focus.

Copyright © 2010 Ryan P. Murphy

Answer: Our next area of Focus.

Copyright © 2010 Ryan P. Murphy

Answer: Our next area of Focus.

Copyright © 2010 Ryan P. Murphy

Answer: Our next area of Focus.

Kettle Lakes

• Kettle Hole – Depression found in glacial deposits. Created

when a piece of ice from a retreating glacier becomes embedded in soft glacial till or glacial drift deposits. Many are filled with water to form a small lake or pond.

Moraine- a ridge of till, deposited at the edge of a retreating ice sheet

The Oak Ridge Moraine

The Oak Ridge Moraine

The Oak Ridge Moraine

Striations

• Formed by erosion

• retreating glaciers contain a lot of debris, this is dragged across the surface of rocks leaving lines in the bedrock

Alpine Glacier Land Formations

Arête- is a sharp ridge between cirques

Horns- pyramid shaped peaks

Cirque- Glacially eroded rock basin found on mountains. Most alpine glaciers

originate from a cirque.

U- Shape Valley, because it has steep sides and a nearly flat floor.

Fjords-A glacial valley or glacial trough found along the coast that is now filled with a mixture of fresh water and

seawater.