The Barnard Glacier
The Barnard Glacier is located in the Saint Elias Mountain Range in Alaska. It is part of Wrangell-St. Elias National Park & Preserve. Sometimes, the glacier is to a "huge alpine highway." The glacier is 53 km (33 mi) long, and trends, or moves in the general direction of, the Chitina River. The glacier has an irregular ice mass. The glacier is close to the nearby Hawkins Glacier. The surrounding area is barely populated, with the nearest town with a population greater than 50,000 being 17 hours away. The nearest populated area is McCarthy, AK, which is a Census-Designated Place. This means a concentration of population used by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes. The glacier is quite prone to earthquakes, but does not experience any other natural disasters. It experiences a destructive earthquake once about every 50 years.
From Accumulation to Termination
Glaciers are formed when layers of snow accumulate and are compacted into ice. This process can take thousands or even millions of years, forming huge glaciers. The Glacier moves slowly as it slides down the valley. In the ablation zone, the glacier loses ice and in doing so carves and erodes the land over which it travels. This causes rock to be weathered, creating interesting formations. Once the glacier reaches the lowest end of the valley, it has reached its terminus. In colder climates such as those in Alaska and the Arctic glaciers may slide all the way to sea level where it breaks off into icebergs and fjords, which form when glaciers slide to sea level and the retreat. The resulting valley is filled with water, creating an inlet.
Who Cares?
In prehistoric times, mostly during Ice Ages, glaciers moved hundreds of miles from the Arctic North down into what is now the Continental United States. This movement has pushed soil from Canada down to regions of North America. This deposition of soil has allowed past civilizations to plant and cultivate crops. Today, this same soil is leftover and still allows for mass planting and harvesting of food. A good example is California's Central Valley, which provides a large amount of the United States' fresh produce.