| Valley
glaciers are found in mountain regions all around the world. They
begin at the top of the mountain where it is snows all year and the
temperatures are always below freezing. The glacier is so heavy at
the top that it begins to move slowly down the mountain. The glacial
ice builds up year after year until the ice is so thick that the bottom
layer melts a little and mixes with dirt and soil. This forms a slick
layer that makes it easy for the glacier to move as gravity
pulls it from the top of the mountain. As gravity pulls the glacier
slowly down the mountain, new snow falls to replace the glacier at
the top of the mountain. As a glacier moves down the valley it scapes
along the sides and bottom of the valley that is already there. It
picks up boulders and sediments
and takes them down the mountain. Valley glaciers cause
a lot of damage to the land that it passes over and makes many new
landforms. |
