valley glaciers is a glacier usually originating in a cirque at a valley head and flowing downward between the walls of a valley. A continental glacier is covers many miles covering the continent. a rock that is moved on the Earth's surface by water, wind, ice or gravity.
What is one main difference between continental glaciers and valley glaciers quizlet?
Continental glaciers never melt . A valley glacier spreads out over a large island or continent. Once the depth of snow and ice reaches more than 30 to 40 meters, the force of friction begins to pull a glacier downhill.
How do valley glaciers and continental ice sheets differ?
In a valley glacier the ice flows downslope from the zone of accumulation, while for a continental glacier the ice flows laterally outward and away from the zone of accumulation.
What are the 4 types of glaciers?
- Ice Sheets. Ice sheets are continental-scale bodies of ice. ...
- Ice Fields and Ice Caps. Ice fields and ice caps are smaller than ice sheets (less than 50,000 sq. ...
- Cirque and Alpine Glaciers. ...
- Valley and Piedmont Glaciers. ...
- Tidewater and Freshwater Glaciers. ...
- Rock Glaciers.
What are the two continental glaciers that remain today?
Earth's two current continental glaciers, the Antarctic and Greenland Ice Sheets , comprise about 99% of Earth's glacial ice, and approximately 68% of Earth's fresh water. The Antarctic Ice Sheet is vastly larger than the Greenland Ice Sheet (Figure 17.4) and contains about 17 times as much ice.
What are the similarities and differences between valley glaciers and continental glaciers?
valley glaciers is a glacier usually originating in a cirque at a valley head and flowing downward between the walls of a valley . A continental glacier is covers many miles covering the continent. a rock that is moved on the Earth's surface by water, wind, ice or gravity.
Why do glaciers look blue?
Glacier ice is blue because the red (long wavelengths) part of white light is absorbed by ice and the blue (short wavelengths) light is transmitted and scattered. The longer the path light travels in ice, the more blue it appears.
Where are continental glaciers found today?
Today, continental glaciers cover most of Antarctica and the island of Greenland . Massive ice sheets covered much of North America and Europe during the Pleistocene time period. This was the last glacial period, also known as the Ice Age.
What is the largest type of glacier?
The largest glaciers are continental ice sheets or icecaps , enormous masses (greater than 50,000 square kilometers [12 million acres]) of ice found only in Antarctica and Greenland. These sheets contain vast quantities of fresh water.
What is the smallest type of glacier?
- Cirque. smallest type of glacier; forms in small bowl-like depressions in the mountains; also called alpine glaciers.
- Valley. ...
- Piedmont. ...
- Ice Fields. ...
- Ice Sheets. ...
- Outlet. ...
- Tidewater. ...
- Ice Streams.
Where is the largest glacier in the world?
Lambert Glacier, Antarctica , is the biggest glacier in the world. This map of Lambert Glacier shows the direction and speed of the glacier.
Which one is not a continental glacier?
Continental glaciers are continuous masses of ice that are much larger than alpine glaciers. Small continental glaciers are called ice fields. Big continental glaciers are called ice sheets. Greenland and Antarctica are almost entirely covered with ice sheets that are up to 3500 m (11 500 ft) thick.
How many continental glaciers exist on earth today?
There are about 198,000 to 200,000 glaciers in the world.
Where is the world's largest ice sheet located today?
They affect us through their connections with the ocean and sea level, and environmental change is having rapid consequences in Antarctica . Antarctica is the world's largest ice sheet, covering ~14,000,000 km 2 . Much of the Antarctic ice sheet surface lies above 3000 m above sea level.
What are the major similarities and differences between Alpine glaciers continental glaciers and ice caps?
Continental glaciers form in a central location with ice moving outward in all directions . Alpine glaciers form in high mountains and travel through valleys. Ice caps cover large areas. Because glaciers move, they have characteristic features like crevasses and bergshrunds.
What are two types of glacial erosion?
- Abrasion – as the glacier moves downhill, rocks that have been frozen into the base and sides of the glacier scrape the rock beneath. ...
- Plucking – rocks become frozen into the bottom and sides of the glacier.
