glaciers

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ablation

(1) combined processes (such as sublimation, fusion or melting, evaporation) which remove snow or ice from the surface of a glacier or from a snow-field; also used to express the quantity lost by these processes (2) reduction of the water equivalent of a snow cover by melting, evaporation, wind and avalanches.

Topic: 
climatology and meteorology
glaciers
snow

ablation area

the area of a glacier where more glacier mass is lost than gained.
Topic: 
glaciers

ablation hollows

depressions in the snow surface caused by the sun or warm, gusty wind.
Topic: 
glaciers

ablation moraine

mound or layer of moraine in the ablation zone of a glacier; the rock has been plucked from the mountainside by the moving glacier and is melting out on the ice surface.
Topic: 
glaciers

ablation season

period during which glaciers lose more mass than they gain; usually coincides with summer.
Topic: 
glaciers

ablation zone

area or zone of a glacier where snow and ice ablation exceed accumulation.
Topic: 
glaciers

accumulation

all processes by which snow or ice are added to a glacier, this is typically the accumulation of snow, which is slowly transformed into ice; other accumulation processes can include avalanches, wind-deposited snow, and the freezing of rain within the snow pack.
Topic: 
glaciers
climatology and meteorology
snow

accumulation area

area of a glacier where more mass is gained than lost.
Topic: 
glaciers

accumulation season

period during which a glacier gains more mass than it loses; usually coincides with winter.
Topic: 
glaciers

accumulation zone

area of a glacier where more mass is gained than lost.
Topic: 
glaciers

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