What is the name for a large, slow moving, persistent body of ice that forms when the accumulation of snow exceeds its' rate of melting?
Glacier ice accumulation Glacier ice accumulation Glacier ice accumulation occurs through accumulation of snow and other frozen precipitation, as well as through other means including rime ice (freezing of water vapor on the glacier surface), avalanching from hanging glaciers on cliffs and mountainsides above, and re-freezing of glacier meltwater as superimposed ice. Accumulation is one element in the glacier mass balance formula, with ablation counteracting. With successive years in which accumulation exceeds ablation, then a glacier will experience positive mass balance, and its terminus will advance. Glaciologists subdivide glaciers into glacier accumulation zones, based on the melting and refreezing occurring. These zones include
Snow science continuity because they can map the surface beneath clouds and in darkness. When combined with reflective measurements, passive microwave sensing greatly extends the inferences possible about the snowpack. Snow science often leads to predictive models that include snow deposition, snow melt, and snow hydrology—elements of the Earth's water cycle—which help describe global climate change. Global climate change models (GCMs) incorporate snow as a factor in their calculations. Some important aspects of snow cover include its albedo (reflectivity of light) and insulating qualities, which slow the rate of seasonal melting of sea ice. As of 2011, the melt phase of GCM