glacial rivers
Meltwater flowing streams
Glacial rivers are streams fed by meltwater from glaciers, typically carrying fine sedite called glacial flour that gives them a distinctive milky or turquoise appearance.
These rivers often flow through braided channels across outwash plains, their volume fluctuating dramatically with seasonal temperatures.
The cold, sediment-laden water creates unique ecosystems and carves distinctive U-shaped valleys over geological time.
- ice ageEra of massive glaciation
- glacial flourIce-crushed mineral particles
- ice sheetsMassive land-covering glaciers
- glacial meltFrozen mass becoming water
- meltwaterWater from melted ice
aquatic habitats · jökulhlaup · ice field · moraine · erosion · crevasse · permafrost · gravel bars · esker · deposition · turbidity · fjords · milky · snowmelt · sedimentation · silt · tributary · alpine stream