What latitudes are most likely to see glaciers?

Answer 1

The most likely latitudes to see glaciers are maritimeareas north of 35˚N and south of 35˚S. This is because these regions are cooler than the lower latitudes and are within the westerly wind belt.

Being within the westerly wind belt means that areas close to the sea will see high precipitation that does not decrease above a certain altitude as convective rainfall in hotter latitudes does. This means that when a moist flow forms on a high enough mountain, it can generate enormous snowfall that even warm summer conditions cannot melt.

In continental regions north of 35˚N and south of 35˚S, snowfall is likely to be light even though the winters are much colder than in more maritime localities. This is because the westerly winds have a strong tendency to dry out when they are forced to descend from a mountain range, as seen in the heavily glaciated Wet Andes, Southern Alps, Olympics, Cascades and Prokletije. The result is that areas leeward of those ranges, even though located in an unstable weather belt of changing frontal systems, are far from humid as the air is subsiding. Under these conditions, no matter how cold it is there is often not enough snowfall to form glaciers, especially as further inland summers can be hotter with more melting.

Between 35˚N and 35˚S (the Tropical and Unenriched Worlds plus a few of the hottest parts of the Enriched) glaciers are confined to a few very high and young mountains, almost exclusively the Himalayas and Andes. Even there they are restricted by the tendency of precipitation to decrease above around 2,500 metres (8,200 feet) because of the low effectiveness of convective rainfall in cool temperatures. In the desert belts between 19˚ and 27˚ from the equator, no glaciers exist anywhere in the world, not even in the Andes.

Answer 2

The most likely latitudes to see glaciers are maritimeareas north of 35˚N and south of 35˚S. This is because these regions are cooler than the lower latitudes and are within the westerly wind belt.

Being within the westerly wind belt means that areas close to the sea will see high precipitation that does not decrease above a certain altitude as convective rainfall in hotter latitudes does. This means that when a moist flow forms on a high enough mountain, it can generate enormous snowfall that even warm summer conditions cannot melt.

In continental regions north of 35˚N and south of 35˚S, snowfall is likely to be light even though the winters are much colder than in more maritime localities. This is because the westerly winds have a strong tendency to dry out when they are forced to descend from a mountain range, as seen in the heavily glaciated Wet Andes, Southern Alps, Olympics, Cascades and Prokletije. The result is that areas leeward of those ranges, even though located in an unstable weather belt of changing frontal systems, are far from humid as the air is subsiding. Under these conditions, no matter how cold it is there is often not enough snowfall to form glaciers, especially as further inland summers can be hotter with more melting.

Between 35˚N and 35˚S (the Tropical and Unenriched Worlds plus a few of the hottest parts of the Enriched) glaciers are confined to a few very high and young mountains, almost exclusively the Himalayas and Andes. Even there they are restricted by the tendency of precipitation to decrease above around 2,500 metres (8,200 feet) because of the low effectiveness of convective rainfall in cool temperatures. In the desert belts between 19˚ and 27˚ from the equator, no glaciers exist anywhere in the world, not even in the Andes.