icefall
Frozen glacial rapids
An icefall is a steep, broken section of a glacier where the ice fractures into crevasses and seracs as it flows over uneven terrain—essentially a frozen waterfall.
The Khumbu Icefall on Mount Everest is among the most famous and dangerous: Climbers crossed the icefall before dawn, when the ice was most stable.
Glacial ice pinnacle
- crevasseDeep glacial fissure
- glacierSlow-moving ice mass
- firnYear-old compacting snow
- moulinGlacier's vertical drainage shaft
calving · ablation · accumulation · icefield · glaciology · crampons · moraine · glaciate
Sudden structural failure
- unstableProne to sudden change
- crevasseDeep glacial fissure
- seracGlacial ice pinnacle
- perilSerious threat of harm
danger · risk · precarious · fatalities · accident · injury · catastrophe · chasm
Glacial ice pinnacle
- crevasseDeep glacial fissure
- cramponsSpiked boot attachments
- ropesBraided flexible cords
- alpinistHigh-peak climber
expedition · basecamp · sherpa · ascent · belay · carabiner · piton · harness
serac
Glacial ice pinnacle
moulin · calving · ablation · accumulation · icefield · glaciology · crampons · moraine · glaciate · icecap
collapse
Sudden structural failure
peril · danger · risk · precarious · fatalities · accident · injury · catastrophe · chasm · safety
serac
Glacial ice pinnacle
alpinist · expedition · basecamp · sherpa · ascent · belay · carabiner · piton · harness · ladder
collapse
Sudden structural failure
trigger · debris · roar · rumble · cascade · destructive · force · mass · plunge · surge
crystalline
Clear, ordered, brilliant
polar · hoarfrost · rime · permafrost · frostbite · gelid · chill · winter
- AntarcticaSouth Pole, Amundsen, Scott, penguins, glaciology
- glaciersglacier, crevasse, moraine, firn, cirque
- mountaineeringsummit, alpinist, mountaineer, crampons, crampon
- Mountain Perilsavalanche, rockfall, crevasse, hypothermia, frostbite
- glacial hazardscrevasse, avalanche, serac, calving, moulin
- Cold RegionsArctic, Antarctica, tundra regions, polar regions, Siberia
icefallwaterfall
Descending river over precipice
cascade · hot spring · geyser · cataract · thermal vent