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.
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How would sea level change if all glaciers melted?
There is still some uncertainty about the full volume of glaciers and ice caps on Earth, but if all of them were to melt, global sea level would rise approximately 70 meters (approximately 230 feet), flooding every coastal city on the planet. Learn more: USGS Water Science School: Glaciers and Icecaps National Snow and Ice Data Center: Facts about Glaciers U.S. Global Change Research Program: Sea...
What are the impacts of glacier loss, other than losing an aesthetic landscape feature?
Glaciers act as reservoirs of water that persist through summer. Continual melt from glaciers contributes water to the ecosystem throughout dry months, creating perennial stream habitat and a water source for plants and animals. The cold runoff from glaciers also affects downstream water temperatures. Many aquatic species in mountainous environments require cold water temperatures to survive. Some...
What is a Benchmark Glacier?
“ Benchmark Glacier ” refers to four North American glaciers that have been selected for long-term glacier monitoring that investigates climate, glacier geometry, glacier mass balance, glacier motion, and stream runoff. Benchmark glaciers monitored by the USGS are: Gulkana Glacier and Wolverine Glacier in Alaska South Cascade Glacier in Washington Sperry Glacier in Montana Learn more: USGS...
Is there a size criterion for a glacier?
While there is no global standard for what size a body of ice must be to be considered a glacier, USGS scientists in Glacier National Park use the commonly accepted guideline of 0.1 square kilometers (about 25 acres) as the minimum size of a glacier. Below this size, ice is generally stagnant and does not have enough mass to move. Learn more: Status of Glaciers in Glacier National Park
What is a glacier?
A glacier is a large, perennial accumulation of crystalline ice, snow, rock, sediment, and often liquid water that originates on land and moves down slope under the influence of its own weight and gravity. Typically, glaciers exist and may even form in areas where: mean annual temperatures are close to the freezing point winter precipitation produces significant accumulations of snow temperatures...
Related Content
How would sea level change if all glaciers melted?
There is still some uncertainty about the full volume of glaciers and ice caps on Earth, but if all of them were to melt, global sea level would rise approximately 70 meters (approximately 230 feet), flooding every coastal city on the planet. Learn more: USGS Water Science School: Glaciers and Icecaps National Snow and Ice Data Center: Facts about Glaciers U.S. Global Change Research Program: Sea...
What are the impacts of glacier loss, other than losing an aesthetic landscape feature?
Glaciers act as reservoirs of water that persist through summer. Continual melt from glaciers contributes water to the ecosystem throughout dry months, creating perennial stream habitat and a water source for plants and animals. The cold runoff from glaciers also affects downstream water temperatures. Many aquatic species in mountainous environments require cold water temperatures to survive. Some...
What is a Benchmark Glacier?
“ Benchmark Glacier ” refers to four North American glaciers that have been selected for long-term glacier monitoring that investigates climate, glacier geometry, glacier mass balance, glacier motion, and stream runoff. Benchmark glaciers monitored by the USGS are: Gulkana Glacier and Wolverine Glacier in Alaska South Cascade Glacier in Washington Sperry Glacier in Montana Learn more: USGS...
Is there a size criterion for a glacier?
While there is no global standard for what size a body of ice must be to be considered a glacier, USGS scientists in Glacier National Park use the commonly accepted guideline of 0.1 square kilometers (about 25 acres) as the minimum size of a glacier. Below this size, ice is generally stagnant and does not have enough mass to move. Learn more: Status of Glaciers in Glacier National Park
What is a glacier?
A glacier is a large, perennial accumulation of crystalline ice, snow, rock, sediment, and often liquid water that originates on land and moves down slope under the influence of its own weight and gravity. Typically, glaciers exist and may even form in areas where: mean annual temperatures are close to the freezing point winter precipitation produces significant accumulations of snow temperatures...