Welcome to AntarcticGlaciers! This page lists the different sections of the website that are relevant students in high school and post-16 education, and especially to the “Glacial Systems and Landscapes” section of the AQA A-Level physical geography syllabus. These pages will also be relevant to students taking other exam boards for their Geography A-Level, and […]
Post-16 education and A-Level content on AntarcticGlaciers Read More »
This page is based largely on Bendle et al. (2017) and summarises the glacial geomorphology of the North Patagonian Icefield region (46–48°S). Glaciers and the Patagonian landscape The Patagonian Ice Sheet has expanded and contracted at least five times during the last million years1. During glacial periods, large outlet glaciers discharged along major valleys (see
Glacial geomorphology of the Patagonian Ice Sheet Read More »
Geographic setting Patagonia, between ~40°S to 56°S, is the most southerly part of the South American continent. The landscape of this region is one of contrasts. Dense temperate rainforests cover the western coast, whereas the eastern plains are flat, vast, and arid. Perhaps most striking, however, are the high, Patagonian Andes, which rise steeply (up
The Patagonian Icefields today Read More »
The moisture-bearing Southern Westerly Winds The Patagonian Ice Sheet, which formed during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) around 21,000 years ago, was strongly influenced by the Southern Westerly Winds. These winds blow around the Southern Hemisphere in the mid-latitudes (see map below) and deliver snow and rain to the western coast of southern South America[1],
The westerly winds and the Patagonian Ice Sheet Read More »
What was the former Patagonian Ice Sheet? The Patagonian Ice Sheet was a large, elongated mountain ice mass that developed over the Andes mountains of southern South America during cold periods[1]. The Patagonian Ice Sheet has advanced and retreated at least 5 times in the last million years[2] in response to changes in global climate (i.e.
Patagonian Ice Sheet at the LGM Read More »
This page summarises some of our recent research on the dynamics of Patagonian outlet glaciers during the Last Glacial Maximum and following deglaciation. Pages on glacial landforms are especially relevant to the Geography A-Level curriculum. Here, you can watch a seminar I gave about the Patagonian Ice Sheet: Further reading: QFuego-Patagonia: a website that includes
Patagonian Ice Sheet Read More »
There are many different kinds of ice. Land ice is ice grounded on land, and above sea level. If this ice melts, it contributes to sea level rise. Glaciers and ice sheets are the most common kind of land ice. The Antarctic Ice Sheet is surrounded by many other kinds of ice. Sea ice is
Videos This video from the BBC shows how glaciers flow, making good use of timelapse imagery.
Drumlins around Lago Viedma Although the Patagonian Icefields aren’t generally associated with drumlins (Glasser et al., 2008), there are some around Lago Viedma in the South Patagonian Icefield. They have been described in detail (Ponce et al., 2013) but they show up beautifully in the Landsat map below. The mapping below is by me (Bethan
Introduction | Remote sensing of glaciers | Glacier inventories | The Randolph Glacier Inventory | Glacier contributions to sea level rise | Summary | References | Comments | Introduction How many glaciers are there in the World? How much ice do they have? How much will they raise sea levels on full melting? How likely,
Mapping the World’s Glaciers Read More »
