The Russell Glacier is a medium-sized

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 ...

on the north flank of

Mount Rainier Mount Rainier (), indigenously known as Tahoma, Tacoma, Tacobet, or təqʷubəʔ, is a large active stratovolcano in the Cascade Range of the Pacific Northwest, located in Mount Rainier National Park about south-southeast of Seattle. With a s ...

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...

. Named for the geologist

Israel Russell Israel Cook Russell, LL.D. (December 10, 1852 – May 1, 1906) was an American geologist and geographer who explored Alaska in the late 19th century. Early life and education Russell was born at Garrattsville, New York, on December 10, 1852. He r ...

, it covers and contains 3.1 billion ft³ (88 million m³) of

ice Ice is water frozen into a solid state, typically forming at or below temperatures of 0 degrees Celsius or Depending on the presence of impurities such as particles of soil or bubbles of air, it can appear transparent or a more or less opaq ...

. Starting from its highest point at , the Russell Glacier flows northeast towards the

Carbon Glacier Carbon Glacier is located on the north slope of Mount Rainier in the U.S. state of Washington and is the source of the Carbon River. The snout at the glacier terminal moraine is at about above sea level, making it the lowest-elevation glacier in ...

and contributes ice to the larger glacier before becoming distinct below . With most of the ice located from to , the glacier only descends to , unlike the much lower extent of the Carbon Glacier. Echo Rock and Observation Rock, two minor sub-peaks of Rainier, lie northwest of this glacier. Meltwater from the glacier eventually reaches the

Carbon River The Carbon River is a river in the U.S. state of Washington. It flows about 30 miles (48 km) from its source, the Carbon Glacier on Mount Rainier, to join the Puyallup River at Orting. Charles Wilkes called the river the "Upthascap River", ...

References

{{Glaciers of Mount Rainier Glaciers of Mount Rainier Glaciers of Washington (state)

See also

References