Landforms and Landscapes of
Mountain Glaciers
Objectives
• Examine the current distribution of mountain
glaciers and to comment on the Late Cenozoic
extent of these glaciers
• Describe the characteristic landforms
produced by mountain glacier erosion
• Discuss the landforms produced by glacial
deposition in mountain landscapes
Global Distribution of Mountain Glaciers
• North America
– Major clusters lie in the
Arctic islands of Canada,
southeastern Alaska,
Canada’s Yukon & Coast
Mountains of British
Columbia, and Canadian
Rocky Mountains
• South America
– Just south of 45°S in
southern Andes of Chile
Global Distribution of Mountain Glaciers
• Africa
– Only two exist
• Mt. Kilimanjaro
• Mt. Kenya
• New Zealand
– Occur in Southern Alps
– Several glaciers still exist
around Mt. Cook
Global Distribution of Mountain Glaciers
• European Alps
– Most famous
– Extends from
southeastern
France to SwissItalian border
– Mont Blanc is
highest sitting at
4807 m (15,771
ft)
Global Distribution of Mountain Glaciers
• South-central Asian Alps
– Largest mountain system
– Extends from
Afghanistan to
southwestern China
– World’s highest
mountain – Mt. Everest
8850 m (29,035 ft)
Erosional Landforms of Mountain Glaciers
• Glacial
Troughs –
widening of
valley bottom
producing a Ushaped valley
Erosional Landforms of Mountain Glaciers
• Truncated Spurs
– ridge of land is cut off
producing a bluntended ridge; caused
by erosion of moving
glaciers
• Hanging Valley
– Tributary valley sits
higher than main
valley floor
– Marked by scenic
waterfall
Formation of High-Mountain Landforms
• Accumulation of snow
• Downslope movement
of ice under gravity
• Glacial erosion occurs
• Transforms source
areas of glaciers
High-Mountain Landforms
• Cirques – amphitheater-like landform; bowlshaped, steep-sided depression in bedrock
High-Mountain Landforms
• Horn
– Multiple cirque develop around mountain peak
– Steep-sided, sharp-edged peak remains
High-Mountain Landforms
• Aretes
– Razor-sharp, jagged
ridges rising above
glacial troughs
– Forms at the
interaction of two
large cirques
• Rock Steps
– Step-like profile
formed by differential
resistance
High-Mountain Landforms
Glacial Lakes are depressions formed by glacial erosion
and filled by water during interglacial period
• Tarns
– Lakes dammed up behind edge of cirque
High-Mountain Landforms
• Fjords
– Narrow, steep-sided, elongated ocean inlet
– Area where glacial troughs inundated by seawater
Depositional Landforms of Mountain Glaciers
• Rock Flour
– Grounded up, fine-grained sediment
• Lateral Moraines
– Ridge of debris located along both sides of a glacier
• Medial Moraines
– Linear debris marked the boundary between two glaciers
Depositional Landforms of Mountain Glaciers
Postglacial Landscape Change
• Glacial areas are not stable
• Modifications are quite rapid
• Produce scenic areas