How old is glacier ice?
- The age of the oldest glacier ice in Antarctica may approach 1,000,000 years old
- The age of the oldest glacier ice in Greenland is more than 100,000 years old
- The age of the oldest Alaskan glacier ice ever recovered (from a basin between Mt. Bona and Mt. Churchill) is about 30,000 years old.
Glacier flow moves newly formed ice through the entire length of a typical Alaskan valley glacier in 100 years or less. Based on flow rates, it takes less than 400 years for ice to transit the entire 140 + mile length of Bering Glacier, Alaska’s largest and longest glacier.
Learn more: USGS Water Science School - Glaciers: Things to Know
Related
How many glaciers currently exist in Alaska?
Based on the most recent comprehensive survey in 2011, there were about 27,000 glaciers in Alaska. However, the number of glaciers is a misleading statistic. Scientists are more interested in total glacial land coverage as a measure. The number of glaciers is less important since large ones can split up into several as they retreat. The amount of area glaciers occupy in Alaska is trending downward...
Was all of Alaska covered by glaciers during the Pleistocene Ice Age?
No--most of interior Alaska, south of the Brooks Range and north of the Alaska Range, was a non-glaciated grassland refuge habitat for a number of plant and animal species during the maximum Pleistocene glaciation. This ice-free corridor also provided one route for humans to move into North America. Learn more: USGS Water Science School - Glaciers: Things to Know
Is glacier ice a type of rock?
Glacier ice, like limestone (for example), is a type of rock. Glacier ice is actually a mono-mineralic rock (a rock made of only one mineral, like limestone which is composed of the mineral calcite). The mineral ice is the crystalline form of water (H 2O). Most glacier ice forms through the metamorphism of tens of thousands of individual snowflakes into crystals of glacier ice. Each snowflake is a...
Where are Earth’s glaciers located?
Glaciers exist on every continent except Australia. Approximate distribution is: 91% in Antarctica 8% in Greenland Less than 0.5% in North America (about 0.1% in Alaska) 0.2% in Asia Less than 0.1% are in South America, Europe, Africa, New Zealand, and Indonesia.
Related
How many glaciers currently exist in Alaska?
Based on the most recent comprehensive survey in 2011, there were about 27,000 glaciers in Alaska. However, the number of glaciers is a misleading statistic. Scientists are more interested in total glacial land coverage as a measure. The number of glaciers is less important since large ones can split up into several as they retreat. The amount of area glaciers occupy in Alaska is trending downward...
Was all of Alaska covered by glaciers during the Pleistocene Ice Age?
No--most of interior Alaska, south of the Brooks Range and north of the Alaska Range, was a non-glaciated grassland refuge habitat for a number of plant and animal species during the maximum Pleistocene glaciation. This ice-free corridor also provided one route for humans to move into North America. Learn more: USGS Water Science School - Glaciers: Things to Know
Is glacier ice a type of rock?
Glacier ice, like limestone (for example), is a type of rock. Glacier ice is actually a mono-mineralic rock (a rock made of only one mineral, like limestone which is composed of the mineral calcite). The mineral ice is the crystalline form of water (H 2O). Most glacier ice forms through the metamorphism of tens of thousands of individual snowflakes into crystals of glacier ice. Each snowflake is a...
Where are Earth’s glaciers located?
Glaciers exist on every continent except Australia. Approximate distribution is: 91% in Antarctica 8% in Greenland Less than 0.5% in North America (about 0.1% in Alaska) 0.2% in Asia Less than 0.1% are in South America, Europe, Africa, New Zealand, and Indonesia.
Updated Date: March 25, 2025