Term
| What do you call the part of the Earth system that remains frozen all year long? |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| What is the main requirement to get a glacier, and how does this relate to the snowline? |
|
Definition
The total accumulation of ice during the winter must be greater than the total amount of ablation in the summer
Ablation: melting and sublimating |
|
|
Term
| What are the six fundamental types of glaciers listed in your book (this is a morphological classification)? |
|
Definition
1. Cirque glaciers (bowl shaped)
2. Valley glaciers
3. Fjord glaciers (valley below sea level)
4. Ice Caps (small)
5. Ice Sheets (large)
6. Ice Shelves (sit on water) |
|
|
Term
| In a thermal classification of glaciers, what are the two main types? |
|
Definition
Warm (temperate, fast)
Cold (polar, frozen) |
|
|
Term
| Know what mass balance on a glacier refers to, and how it relates to the accumulation zone, ablation zone, and equilibrium line on a glacier. |
|
Definition
Accumulation - Ablation through a year
(October to October) |
|
|
Term
| What are the two main ways that glaciers move? |
|
Definition
Internal flow: ice crystals shear past each other
Basal Sliding: (warm) whole mass slides along bed |
|
|
Term
| Know what causes a glacier to advance, retreat or remain stable, and know what direction the ice that makes up the glacier is moving in each case. |
|
Definition
Stable - accumulation = ablation
Advancing - ablation accumulation
Ice always flows down hill! |
|
|
Term
| What shape valley do glaciers form? |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| What effect does the melting of sea ice have on ocean levels? |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| What two aspects of sea ice need to be measured to know if it is truly is shrinking? |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| What will the freezing and melting of sea ice do to the salinity of surface water? |
|
Definition
Freeze- salinity increases
Melt- salinity decreases |
|
|
Term
| Besides changing seawater salinity, what other affects does sea ice have on the Earth system? |
|
Definition
Ice is reflective-keeps planet cool
Ice reduces evaporation
Ice allows migration routes for some organisms |
|
|
Term
| What is the name of ground that is frozen all year long, and how could its melting affect the climate system? |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
| When did the last ice age begin, and when did the last glaciation begin and end? |
|
Definition
Ice age: 2mya to present
Glaciation: 75,000ya - 10,000ya |
|
|
Term
| What are the three main ways to get an ice age on Earth? |
|
Definition
Plate tectonics changing ocean circulation
Reduced green house gas in the atmosphere
Change in Earth's orbit around the Sun (Milankovitch cycles) |
|
|
