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simple . . it's because the glacier melted . . .

The snow actually forms a glacier through a long process...a metamorphosis of sorts. Snow (which is an ice crystal) falls in an area that stays cold enough year round that snow doesn't totally melt in the summer. There has to be a large accumulation of snow and it must be in a place that isn't prone to avalanches or severe enough wind to blow the snow away. Or (as in the poles, the snow that falls stays because it stays cold enough that the snow doesn't melt all year.)

Over a period of time, new layers of snow pile on top of previous snows, some parts melt so the layers pack more and more tightly. The transformation becomes known as firn. Eventually the firn transforms into a solid bluish mass filled with air bubbles. It can take a few decades or much longer.

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Why is ice in a glacier considered to be a mineral but but what forms a glacier is not?

Ice in a glacier is considered a mineral because it has a crystalline structure and forms through natural processes, meeting the criteria to be classified as a mineral. However, the material that forms a glacier, such as snow, does not have a defined crystal structure and does not meet the criteria to be classified as a mineral.


How is a glacier formed the melting and refreezing of snow the weathering and erosion of snow the erosion and deposition of ice the melting and precipitation of snow?

A glacier is formed through the accumulation of snow that compresses into ice over time. As more snow falls and compacts, it displaces air and forms glacial ice. This process is aided by the weight of the overlying snow, which causes the lower layers to compress and recrystallize into ice.


Which came first the snowfield or the glacier?

A snowfield typically forms before a glacier. Snow accumulates on high-altitude areas, gradually turning into firn (a type of compacted snow). Over time, the firn transforms into glacial ice, leading to the development of a glacier.


Is glacier a solid?

A glacier is made up of ice, a solid, but the ice flows, melts, and recrystallizes regularly.


How does a glacier grow?

A glacier forms in a place where snow builds up for years. The main thing is that it has to be in a place where the snow does not melt in the summer. After so long, the weight of the snow compresses and becomes as, and as long as more snow falls on top of that glacier, that is what happens..... ^.^ I hope this answer helped!

Related Questions

Why does the snow that forms a glacier that change to ice?

The snow changes the ice because in order to create the large mass of ice the temperature must freeze the huge clump of snow into a large mass of ice, thus creating the glacier, and so forth the glaciers would then be considered the large mass of ice that was meant to be formed.


Why does the snow that forms glacier change to ice?

The snow changes the ice because in order to create the large mass of ice the temperature must freeze the huge clump of snow into a large mass of ice, thus creating the glacier, and so forth the glaciers would then be considered the large mass of ice that was meant to be formed.


Why does the snow the forms a glacier change to ice?

The snow changes the ice because in order to create the large mass of ice the temperature must freeze the huge clump of snow into a large mass of ice, thus creating the glacier, and so forth the glaciers would then be considered the large mass of ice that was meant to be formed.


What forms when ice and snow build up in a mountain valley?

valley glacier


Why is ice in a glacier considered to be a mineral but but what forms a glacier is not?

Ice in a glacier is considered a mineral because it has a crystalline structure and forms through natural processes, meeting the criteria to be classified as a mineral. However, the material that forms a glacier, such as snow, does not have a defined crystal structure and does not meet the criteria to be classified as a mineral.


A glacier forms in an area where more snow falls than?

A glacier forms under certain terrain conditions and where more snow falls in the winter than melts in the summer.


What is glacier ice?

A glacier is something that forms when snow falls in a place where it never has the time to melt. Eventually it builds up thick enough to turn into a thick slab of ice, and that's a glacier. Cut a piece of it, and that's glacier ice.


What is a thick ice mass that forms over the land from the accumulation compaction and recrystallization of snow is a?

Glacier.


Is a glacier land or water?

A glacier is a mass of ice that forms on land. It is created from the accumulation and compaction of snow over many years.


Why does snow that forms glaciers change to ice?

The snow changes the ice because in order to create the large mass of ice the temperature must freeze the huge clump of snow into a large mass of ice, thus creating the glacier, and so forth the glaciers would then be considered the large mass of ice that was meant to be formed.


How is a glacier formed the melting and refreezing of snow the weathering and erosion of snow the erosion and deposition of ice the melting and precipitation of snow?

A glacier is formed through the accumulation of snow that compresses into ice over time. As more snow falls and compacts, it displaces air and forms glacial ice. This process is aided by the weight of the overlying snow, which causes the lower layers to compress and recrystallize into ice.


Which came first the snowfield or the glacier?

A snowfield typically forms before a glacier. Snow accumulates on high-altitude areas, gradually turning into firn (a type of compacted snow). Over time, the firn transforms into glacial ice, leading to the development of a glacier.