Glaciers from the very beginning

After completing my subject knowledge audit I was woefully aware of my lack of glacial and periglacial knowledge, having only ever encountered these two topics in my first year at university as part of one module (amounting to exactly 2 lectures worth of a quick overview). Since that point, the only time the glacier has been mentioned has been in relation to the Last Glacial Maximum after having covered this in quite a few modules relating to biogeography. Therefore, I am having to start right at the very beginning to try and get to grips with something I have been somewhat determined in avoiding. However, given that this is all in aid to help me help others, I think that it might be somewhat beneficial for me as it will set me back to a classroom sort of level and give me a further appreciation of how difficult or easy it is to learn something completely new from the very beginning.


I feel, after having gone through secondary and higher education level geography, the best place for me to start would be with a good, old fashioned definition. Looking at a variety of sites online, from Extreme Ice Survey to online physical geography dictionary's, the general consensus seems to be:


"Large masses of ice formed through the accumulation of snow over many years. They form in areas where snow fall in winter exceeds snow melt in summer."


This seems fairly basic and straight forward; easily memorable and begins to move in the right direction.

Next, I decided to look at basic facts and where you can find them in the world. Looking at the National Snow and Ice Data Centre (which has been my main calling point thanks to its large section on glaciers!) they have covered about 10% of the total land surface area; a fairly substantial amount and store an estimated 69% of the worlds freshwater. They are usually found in mountainous regions, given the altitude and weather patterns that occur in these areas. Looking at the USGS, I managed to find the following map which shows the areas of the world where glaciers can be found:

Looking at the different places in relation to their climate and altitude, it is unsurprising where they can be found; along most of the mountain ranges in the different continents. Maybe somewhat surprising is the location of glaciers in Africa! They are generally found above the snowline which is why they are generally found in mountainous regions but this differs in different parts of the world, hence why they can be found in Africa.


This general overall of glaciers is a good place to start in helping to identify what they are; both the definition and the map are key indicators which can help to try and start getting your head around the subject. Taking into account climatic conditions associated with them (for example precipitation and temperature) can help to show the type of formation they are and why they form - although this will be looked at it further detail.


Overall, this first post has helped me to get my foot in the door of the topic of glaciers by looking at the basics. Having a quick look over my university notes, I know I have yet some way to go but I feel that teaching students this topic, this would surely be the best way to start as it is simple yet easy to comprehend. Next time I think will become more challenging looking at how they form and the different types of glacier - an area with many names and technical terms to remember (unfortunately!). Trawling youtube for videos I think is going to be my first port of call!