Harrison Glacier is a
glacier
A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its Ablation#Glaciology, ablation over many years, often Century, centuries. It acquires dis ...
located in the US state of
Montana
Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbi ...
in
Glacier National Park.
Situated on a southeast‐facing ridge immediately south of
Mount Jackson, it is the largest remaining glacier in Glacier National Park, estimated in 2005 to have an area of .
[ Harrison Glacier lost only 9 percent of its surface area in the 40-year period between 1966 and 2005 and will likely still exist well beyond 2030.]accumulation zone
On a glacier, the accumulation zone is the area above the firn line, where snowfall accumulates and exceeds the losses from ablation, (melting, evaporation, and sublimation). The annual equilibrium line separates the accumulation and ablation zo ...
is at a much higher altitude (approximately ), which has allowed it to maintain some equilibrium in its glacier mass balance
Crucial to the survival of a glacier is its mass balance or surface mass balance (SMB), the difference between accumulation and ablation (sublimation and melting). Climate change may cause variations in both temperature and snowfall, causing c ...
.[ Comparisons of images of the glacier taken in 1913 with images from 2009 indicate that the glacier has experienced thinning and retreat.]
See also
* List of glaciers in the United States
This is a list of glaciers existing in the United States, currently or in recent centuries. These glaciers are located in nine states, all in the Rocky Mountains or farther west. The southernmost named glacier among them is the Lilliput Glacier ...
* Glaciers in Glacier National Park (U.S.)
There are at least 35 named glaciers in Glacier National Park (U.S.). At the end of the Little Ice Age about 1850, the area containing the national park had 150 glaciers. There are 25 active glaciers remaining in the park as of 2022. Since the l ...
References
Glaciers of Flathead County, Montana
Glaciers of Glacier National Park (U.S.)
Glaciers of Montana
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