Ice field

An ice field (also spelled icefield) is an area less than 50,000 km² (19,305 mile²) of ice often found in the colder climates and higher altitudes of the world where there is sufficient precipitation[1]. Square Kilometre ( US spelling square kilometer) symbol km2, is a decimal multiple of the SI unit of The square mile is an imperial and US unit of Area equal the area of a square of one statute mile. Ice is a Solid phase, usually crystalline, of a Non-metalic substance that is liquid or gas at Room temperature, such as Ammonia It is an extensive area of interconnected valley glaciers from which the higher peaks rise as nunataks. A nunatak (from Inuit nunataq) is an exposed often rocky element of a ridge mountain or peak not covered with ice or snow within (or at the edge of an ice Ice fields are larger than alpine glaciers, smaller than ice sheets and similar in area to ice caps. "Glacial" and "Glaciation" redirect here For the geological periods see Glacial period. An ice sheet is a mass of Glacier Ice that covers surrounding terrain and is greater than 50000 km² (20000 mile²) An ice cap is an Ice mass that covers less than 50 000 km² of land area (usually covering a highland area

1 Formation
2 Ice fields of the world
3 See also

Formation

Ice fields are formed by a large accumulation of snow which, through years of compression and freezing, turns into ice. Due to ice’s susceptibility to gravity, ice fields usually form over large areas that are basins or atop plateaus thus allowing a continuum of ice to form over the landscape and not be interrupted by glacial channels. Glaciers often form on the edges of ice fields serving as gravity-propelled drains on the ice field which is in turn replenished by the ice field’s snowfall.

While an ice cap is unconstrained by topography, an icefield is. An ice field is also distinguishable from an ice cap because it does not have a dome-like form (Summerfield 1991).

Ice fields of the world

Antarctica

While not technically an ice field (a continental-sized ice sheet rather), Antarctica is extensively covered by ice. A continent is one of several large Landmasses on Earth. They are generally identified by Convention rather than any strict criteria with seven regions An ice sheet is a mass of Glacier Ice that covers surrounding terrain and is greater than 50000 km² (20000 mile²)

Asia

There are a handful of ice fields in the Himalayas and Altay Mountains (the border range between the Central Asian Republics and China). The Altai Mountains (Алтай Altay; Алтай 阿尔泰山脉 are a Mountain range in central Asia, where Russia, Central Asia is a region of Asia from the Caspian Sea in the west to central China in the east and from southern Russia in the north to northern Pakistan in the south China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National One unexpected ice field is located in Yolyn Am, a mountain valley located in the northern end of the Gobi Desert. Yolyn Am (Ёлын Ам Lammergeier Valley) is a deep and narrow gorge in the Gurvansaikhan Mountains of southern Mongolia. The Gobi (Говь Govi or Gov', "gravel-covered plain" Chinese: zh-t 戈壁(沙漠 Gēbì (Shāmò)

Oceania

There are no ice fields in Australia but there are a few in New Zealand, including the Garden of Eden, the Garden of Allah, and the Olivine Ice Plateau. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island Not to be confused with Eden Gardens.The Garden of Eden ( Hebrew "pleasure" גַּן עֵדֶן Arabic: جنات عدن,

Europe

The only large ice fields in continental Europe are in Norway (e. Norway ( Norwegian: Norge ( Bokmål) or Noreg ( Nynorsk) officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Constitutional g. , Dovre and Jotunheimen), but these are much smaller than their Canadian or Alaskan counterparts. Dovre is a municipality in the county of Oppland, Norway Dovre was separated from Lesja in 1861 Jotunheimen ( English: The Home of the Giants is a mountainous area of roughly 3500 km² in Southern Norway. Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page Alaska ( Аляска Alyaska) is a state in the United States of America, in the northwest of the North American continent There are a handful of small ice fields, also, in the southern Alps. Iceland also features a large ice field that covers a high percentage of the island. Iceland, officially the Republic of Iceland ( ( Ísland or Lýðveldið Ísland (

Greenland

Like Antarctica, Greenland is a continental-sized ice sheet and not technically an ice field.

North America

One of the more famous North American ice fields is the Columbia Icefield located in the Rocky Mountains between Jasper and Banff, Alberta. The Columbia Icefield is an Icefield located in the Canadian Rockies, astride the Continental Divide of North America. Mountain peaks of the Rocky Mountains The Rocky Mountains, often called the Rockies, are a Mountain range in western North America. Jasper is a specialized municipality in western Alberta, Canada. Banff is the largest town in Banff National Park, in Alberta's Rockies, Canada. Alberta (ælˈbɝtə is one of Canada's prairie provinces. It became a province on September 1 1905 However, despite its fame, it is actually a comparatively small ice field relative to the America cordillera. The American cordillera consists of an essentially continuous sequence of Mountain ranges that form the western "backbone" of North America, Central

A large number of particularly expansive ice fields lie in the Coast Mountains, Alaska Range, and Chugach Mountains of Alaska, British Columbia, and the Yukon Territory. The Coast Mountains are a Mountain range of the Pacific Cordillera, running along the north western shore of the North American continent extending south The Alaska Range is a relatively narrow 650-km-long (400 mi Mountain range in the southcentral region of the U The Chugach Mountains of southern Alaska are the northernmost of the several Mountain ranges that make up the Pacific Coast Ranges of the western edge Alaska ( Аляска Alyaska) is a state in the United States of America, in the northwest of the North American continent British Columbia (ˌbrɪtɨʃ kəˈlʌmbiə ( BC) ( (la Colombie-Britannique C Yukon (ˈjuːkɒn is the westernmost and smallest of Canada's three territories. Both the 6,500 km² Stikine Icecap (located between the Stikine and Taku Rivers) and the 2,500 km² Juneau Icefield (located between Lynn Canal and the Taku River) are both straddled along the British Columbian-Alaskan border. Stikine Icecap (sometimes referred to as the Stikine Icefield) is a large Icefield straddled on the Alaska &ndash British Columbia boundary in Stikine River (sti-KEEN is a river historically also the Stickeen River, approximately 335 mi (539 km long in northwestern British Columbia in Not to be confused with the Taku Arm of Tagish Lake The Taku River is a River running from British Columbia, Canada The Juneau Icefield or Juneau Icecap is an Ice field located just north of Juneau, Alaska and continues north through the border with British The Lynn Canal is an Inlet (not an artificial Canal) into the mainland of southeast Alaska. Not to be confused with the Taku Arm of Tagish Lake The Taku River is a River running from British Columbia, Canada Farther north the Kluane Icecap — which feeds the immense Malaspina and Hubbard Glaciers as well as the Bagley Icefield. The Malaspina Glacier in southeastern Alaska is the largest Piedmont glacier this far south in North America. Hubbard Glacier is a tidewater Glacier in the US state of Alaska and the Yukon Territory of Canada. — sits upon the British Columbia-Yukon Territory-Alaska border and surrounds most of the Saint Elias Mountains as well as both Mount Saint Elias and Mount Logan but also extends as far west as the Copper River. The Saint Elias Mountains are a subgroup of the Pacific Coast Ranges located in southeastern Alaska ( United States) southwestern Yukon and the Mount Saint Elias is the second highest Mountain in both the United States and Canada, being situated on the Alaska and Yukon border Mount Logan is Canada 's highest Mountain and the second-highest peak in North America, after Mount McKinley. The Copper River or Ahtna River ( Ahtna Athabascan ' Atna) is a river approximately 300 mi (480 km long in south-central Alaska in

There are also large ice fields located in the Kenai Peninsula-Chugach Mountains area such as the Sargent Icefield and the Harding Icefield. Kenai1jpg|thumb|Kenai Peninsula Outer Coast]]The Kenai Peninsula is a large Peninsula jutting from the southern coast of Alaska in the United States. The Chugach Mountains of southern Alaska are the northernmost of the several Mountain ranges that make up the Pacific Coast Ranges of the western edge The Sargent Icefield is a large Icefield located on the eastern portion of the Kenai Peninsula bordering Prince William Sound in Alaska. The Harding Icefield is an expansive icefield located in the Kenai Mountains of the Kenai Peninsula in Alaska. Throughout the Alaska Range there also large icefields (including one surrounding Denali), although mostly unnamed. "Denali" redirects here For other meanings see Denali (disambiguation.

South America

In South America, there are two main ice fields, Campo de Hielo Norte (translates to Northern Ice Field or Northern Patagonian Ice Field) and Campo de Hielo Sur (translates to Southern Ice Field or Southern Patagonian Ice Field), both in Chile (although there are parts of the Southern Ice Field in Argentina). The Northern Patagonian Ice Field, located in Chile (centered near) refers to the smaller of two remnant parts in which the Patagonian Ice Sheet in the The Southern Patagonia Ice Field ( Spanish: Hielos Continentales or Campo de Hielo Sur) is the third biggest extension of continental ice after Chile, officially the Republic of Chile ( Spanish:) is a country in South America occupying a long and narrow Coastal strip wedged between the For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Argentina topics. There is also a small ice field on the western (Chilean) portion of Tierra del Fuego proper. Chile, officially the Republic of Chile ( Spanish:) is a country in South America occupying a long and narrow Coastal strip wedged between the Tierra del Fuego ( Spanish for " Land of Fire " in English tiˈɛərə dɛl ˈfweɪgoʊ] Spanish ˈtjerað̞elˈfweɰo is an Archipelago Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego (literally Great Island of the Land of Fire) is an island near the southern tip of South America from which it is separated by

Dictionary

-noun

a network of interconnected glaciers or ice streams having a common source
a large expanse of floating ice (several miles long)

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