go back to the FAQ menu

1.  Why is sea ice NOT a glacier?  How can you tell the difference between sea ice and an iceberg?  Why is a permanent snowfield NOT a glacier?

 2.  Why does a glacier flow or ooze downhill?  Glaciers also slide downhill; what happens to sliding when a glacier encounters a rock knob poking up into the bottom of the glacier?

 3.  What changes would make a glacier's ice mass increase?  What changes would make a glacier's ice mass decrease?

 4.  What happens to a glacier when deposits exceed withdrawals?  What happens to a glacier when withdrawals exceed deposits?

5.  Glaciers are very good at eroding solid bedrock.  Name three different features/landforms of glacier erosion. 

6.  Glaciers are also very good at depositing loose material.  Name three different features/landforms of glacier deposition.

7.  Glaciers have been much bigger and more extensive in the past; when was the last glacial era/epoch?  How much of the Earth was covered in glaciers in the last glacial period?

8.  The favorite cause of past glacial eras is something called the "Milankovitch cycle."  What does this phrase, "Milankovitch cycle", refer to?  How can you use the "Milankovitch cycle" to predict when the next glacial period will be?

9.  Describe another way of promoting/causing a new glacial era other than Milankovitch cycles.