Figure 21 Glaciers can carve out large U-shaped valleys, such as this one in Glacier National Park, Montana.

A  U-shaped valley in the mountains that was created by a glacier.

Glaciers also widen and deepen the valleys through which they flow. When glaciers flow through V-shaped valleys cut by running water, they widen them into U-shaped valleys. Glacial valleys are U-shaped because the moving ice scours the entire valley, eroding rock from the valley's bottom and sides. Glacier National Park, shown in Figure 21, contains many U-shaped valleys that were carved by glaciers.

Unlike valley glaciers, continental glaciers tend to level large surface areas through the scraping and grinding of thick ice. Continental glaciers can enlarge and deepen natural depressions in the surface. These depressions then fill with water when the glaciers retreat. The Great Lakes and the Finger Lakes in New York are examples of glacial lakes that formed by this process.

Features Formed by Glacial Deposition

A glacier gathers and transports a huge amount of rock and soil as it moves. When a glacier melts, it deposits its load of sediment, creating a variety of landforms. Glacial sediment is called till. Till is an unsorted mixture of sediment containing fragments of many sizes. Giant boulders, gravel, sand, and pulverized rock dust are all found in till. Glaciers deposit till as they melt. The till forms moraines, mounds of sediment at the downhill end of the glacier and along its sides. As the How It Works box on page 722 explains, glacial deposits leave many traces in the landscape.


End ofPage 721

Table of Contents

Physical Science CHAPTER 1 Science Skills CHAPTER 2 Properties of Matter CHAPTER 3 States of Matter CHAPTER 4 Atomic Structure CHAPTER 5 The Periodic Table CHAPTER 6 Chemical Bonds CHAPTER 7 Chemical Reactions CHAPTER 8 Solutions, Acids, and Bases CHAPTER 9 Carbon Chemistry CHAPTER 10 Nuclear Chemistry CHAPTER 11 Motion CHAPTER 12 Forces and Motion CHAPTER 13 Forces in Fluids CHAPTER 14 Work, Power, and Machines CHAPTER 15 Energy CHAPTER 16 Thermal Energy and Heat CHAPTER 17 Mechanical Waves and Sound CHAPTER 18 The Electromagnetic Spectrum and Light CHAPTER 19 Optics CHAPTER 20 Electricity CHAPTER 21 Magnetism CHAPTER 22 Earth's Interior CHAPTER 23 Earth's Surface CHAPTER 24 Weather and Climate CHAPTER 25 The Solar System CHAPTER 26 Exploring the Universe Skills and Reference Handbook