Space Imagery

GLACIERS & GLACIATED LANDSCAPES

Large ICE SHEETS exist today in Greenland and Antarctica. Smaller ICE CAPS and GLACIERS are found on Iceland, Canadian Arctic islands, in Alaska, and in many mountains around the world--Alps, Andes, Himalayas, Rockies, etc. During the Ice Age--10,000 to 1 million years ago--the regions of glaciation expanded several times to include large portions of North America, Eurasia, and adjacent continental shelves.

Glaciers are powerful agents of erosion, transportation, and deposition of sediment. Glaciers and ice sheets were also capable of inducing significant deformation of crustal sediments and bedrock. By these mechanisms, glaciation has reshaped landscapes over large parts of the world.

Space Image Example

South Greenland: NASA space-shuttle photograph, STS045-152-105, 04/02/99, 5-inch format. High-oblique view northward over southern portion of Greenland and the inland ice sheet. Snow covers all land areas--the ice sheet appears quite smooth and ice-free coastal mountains are rough. Deep fjords cut through coastal mountains, and sea ice is visible along the east coast.

More Space Images

Fire and Ice

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