GLACIER CAVES

Adriana VillaoMichelle UrgilesDecember 28, 2014Cave PresentationMs. Hicks

GLACIER CAVES:They are formed within the ice of a glacier, they usually form from flowing water entering the cave through cracks or crevasses.Another way it is formed, is through volcano vents or hot springs, underneath it, which causes it to form.When the ice melts it creates rivers and streams. Overtime, they enlarge through erosion and melting.Glacier caves is a force that stimulates change, and they are very unstable, they change over years and years through erosion and melting.They increase in size during the summer months because there is a lot of meltwater. They are located near meltwater streams pouring in and out of the glaciers.

CONTINUATION OF GLACIER CAVES:

This cave has the temperature of below 0 degrees Celsius.They have some organisms living inside of them, such as, ice worms and glacier fleas.The flow of meltwater is higher during the daylight hours, which leads to a melt water traffic jam, not all of it can get out at the same time and so results in a clog in the glacier filled with water.When one of these caves disappear, usually another one forms in the exact same place. A type of glacier caves, called vertical caves forms in the middle of the glacier, and it follows the cycle of the ice.

THE PERITO MORENO ICE CAVE:

It is located in Los Glaciares National Park in Southwest Argentina, it is a tourist attraction.It is 5 kilometers wide and an average height of 74 m, and it’s above the surface water of Argentino Lake.Large pieces of ice collapse when glacier advances, also it is one of the only 3 Patagonian glaciers that are growing. It is very famous because of its dynamic changes, it produces a cycle of forward and backward movement, with spectacular ice falls from its front walls.The high pressure on the glacier makes leaks and ends fracturing , tearing it and eventually breaking.

PICTURES OF THE PERITO MORENO ICE CAVE:

THE SNOW DRAGON GLACIER CAVE:The glacier itself is hundreds of years old, groups of amber in the

ice mark each year of snowfall that piled up on top the glacier and compresses into ice over time.Layers of ice inside the glacier get frozen in the crevasses when the temperature drops. Inside the cave, it is pitch dark and there are blocks of snow in the floor of the glacier.Some people have discovered passages shaped like keyholes in the ice about 40 feet off the floor. The snow dragon is above 40 degrees, and it is one of the three caves in the Sandy Glacier Caves system. Also the snow dragon cave is under the Sandy Glacier. This particular glacier is part of another system called the Snow Dragon Cave Glacier System.It is the largest ice cave complex in the lower forty eight states, and it is one of the largest in the world.

PICTURES OF THE SNOW DRAGON GLACIER CAVE:

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WORKS CITED: Wikipedia. “Glacier Cave.” Wikimedia Foundation.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glacier_cave.How Glittering Caves Are Formed. “How

Glittering Caves Are Formed.”http://scribol.com/environment/how-glittering-glacier-caves-are-formed.

OPB Thin Ice. “Exploring Mount Hood’s Glacier Caves.” http://www.opb.org/glaciercaves/.

Wikipedia. “Perito Moreno Glacier.” Wikimedia Foundation. http://

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perito_Moreno_Glacier.