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Physical Geography 1000 > Glaciers > Flashcards

Glaciers Flashcards

(67 cards)

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1
Q

what is a glacier

A

mass of ice originated ON LAND by the recrystallization of snow AND shows evidence of past and present MOVEMENT

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2
Q

______ exceeds ______ in glaciers (snow fall vs snow melt)

A

snow fall EXCEEDS snow melt

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3
Q

four environmental significances of glaciers

A
  1. powerful agent of geomorphologic change
  2. source of freshwater (77% of all freshwater)
  3. release nutrients locked up in rocks
  4. contribute to changes in sea level
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4
Q

two terms associated with changes in sea level

A
  1. isostatic sea-level changes (related to land position)
  2. eustatic sea-level changes (related to water volume)
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5
Q

how is the sea level affected by the formation of glaciers and ice sheets

A
  1. eustatic FALL in the sea level (water is being taken out of the ocean and moved to land)
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6
Q

how is the sea level affected by the further growth of sea sheets

A

isostatic depression of land (land is being pressed DOWN because of the pressure above it) and a rise in sea level

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7
Q

how is the sea level affected by the melting of ice sheets

A

the eustatic rise in sea level (mass of glaciers on land is melting INTO the sea = decrease of freshwater on land)

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8
Q

how is the sea level affected by the decline of ice sheets and glaciers

A
  1. isostatic uplift of the land
  2. decrease in sea level BUT at the same time there is an eustatic rise in the sea level
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9
Q

the first year of snow for the glacial ice formation can be described as

A

mostly aid (not very dense)

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10
Q

what happens to the snow over the years in the formation of glacial ice

A

it begins to become compacted and denser (becomes firn) until it becomes glacial ice

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11
Q

describe the colour of glacial ice and why it is so

A

blue hue - based on it allowing light to pass through it and ONLY being able to absorb short light wavelengths (like blue light)

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12
Q

three major Canadian glacier locations

A
  1. Coridllera
  2. Baffin island
  3. Queen Elizabeth Islands
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13
Q

2 main types of glacier

A
  1. continental
  2. alpine
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14
Q

continental glaciers AKA

A

ice sheets

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15
Q

describe the area covered by ice sheets

A

it is extensive

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16
Q

does the ice cover the topography in an ice sheet

A

YES

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17
Q

describe the flow of ice sheets

A

unconfined due to gravity

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18
Q

example of ice sheets

A
  1. Greenland
  2. Antartica
  3. Laurentide ice sheet
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19
Q

are ice caps constrained

A

NO

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20
Q

what is smaller: ice sheets or ice caps

A

ice caps (have to be smaller than 50 000 km2)

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21
Q

describe the appearance of ice caps

A

dome-like surface or circular

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22
Q

locations of ice caps

A

polar and sub-polar regions
(Yukon, Canadian Arctic…)

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23
Q

describe the appearance of ice fields

A

NO dome-like surface

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24
Q

do ice field show restraint

A

YES

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25
what are often produced by ice fields
outlet glaciers
26
ice shelves
where glaciers float out onto oceans
27
ice shelves are a mix of
fresh ice AND sea ice
28
true or false ice shelves are not sensitive to climate change and thus good indicators
false - are sensitive to climate change
29
where do ice shelves ORIGINATE
on LAND
30
true or false valley glaciers only appear on some of the continents
false- appear on ALL of them
31
where are valley glaciers contained
the flow is contained to the valley between two peaks
32
what are valley glaciers commonly seen as (steep or gradual)
steep
33
cirque glaciers
34
piedmont glacier
35
tidewater glaciers
36
the movement of glaciers is driven by
weight and gravity
37
inputs of glacier processes are the
accumulation zones (snow, ice, rain, avalanches)
38
output of glacier processes are the
ablation zones (meltwater, debris, icebergs)
39
together the outputs and inputs of glacier processes form the
mass budget (which forms the equilibrium line)
40
equilibrium line altitude (ELA)
the highest elevation that a snowline reaches at the end of SUMMEr
41
what can be used to track the glacier health and change
ELA (equilibrium line altitude)
42
what is the terminus area
the lowest end of a glacier
43
how does ice behave
in a plastic manner (by deforming and flowing under pressure)
44
where does freeze and thaw take place in a glacier
at the base (regelation)
45
how can ice behave in a brittle manner
by breaking and formin crevasses and ice falls
46
what is the importance of water BELOW the glacier
lubrication (helps the glacier have spurts have rapid movement)
47
crevasses are
cracks in the surface in response to stress
48
what are some stresses that can cause crevasses
tension friction with walls compression
49
does the ice flow always balance out with snow accumulation
NO
50
surges are the
high speed movement to get ride of express mass
51
erosion of material by ice can be by
1. scarping 2. polishing 3. plucking 4. bulldozing across surfaces
52
polished rock
debris in ice with a smooth surface
53
cirques
originated curved site of a small glacier
54
tarns
small mountain lakes in former glacier hollows
55
u-shaped valleys and fjords
past presence of glaciers
56
aretes and horns
remnants of backwards erosion (it is a pyramid-shape or knife-edge ride)
57
hanging valleys
glacial valleys above one another (tributary glacier valley)
58
examples of glacial erosion
1. polished drock 2. ciruqes 3. tarns 4. u-shaped valleys and fjords 5. aretes and horns 6. hanging valleys
59
tarn
60
u shaped valley glacier
61
Fjords
62
horns
63
horns show remnants of erosion on ____ sides and are where _____ come together
three or more AND cirques
64
aretes have erosion on _____ sides
both (2)
65
aretes are _____
ridges separating two adjacent glacier valleys OR cirques
66
aretes glacier
67
hanging valley glacier

Physical Geography 1000 (21 decks)

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