National Snow and Ice Data Center

maximum ice extent

the largest sea ice extent during a given year; maximum ice extent marks the end of the growth period for sea ice, and the start of the melt season

mean annual ground temperature (MAGT)

mean annual temperature of the ground at a particular depth.

Topic:

mean annual ground-surface temperature (MAGST)

mean annual temperature of the surface of the ground.

Topic:

mechanical properties of frozen ground

the properties of frozen ground governing its deformability and strength.

Topic:

mechanical strength

the failure strength of a material under given loading conditions.

Topic:

medial moraine

a ridge-shaped moraine in the middle of a glacier originating from a rock outcrop, nunatak, or the converging lateral moraines of two or more ice streams.

Topic:

megadunes

unlike snow dunes that are piles of drifted snow, antarctic megadunes are long, undulating waves in the surface of the ice sheet that are 2 to 4 meters (6.5 to 13 feet) high and 2 to 5 kilometers (1 to 3 miles) apart; they are slightly rounded at their crests and are so subtle that a person on the ground cannot see the pattern.

This NASA satellite image shows a five-mile scale in a megadune area

melt ponds

pools of melted snow and ice on the sea ice surface created during the summer melt.

Scientist taking measurements in a melt pond. (Photo courtesy of Don Perovich, U.S. Army Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory.)

Topic:

sea ice

meltwater conduit

a channel within, underneath, on top of, or near the side of a glacier that drains meltwater out of the glacier; usually kept open by the frictional heating of flowing water that melts the ice walls of the conduit.

Topic:

mercury barometer

a mercury-filled glass tube in which the height of the mercury column is a measure of air pressure.

Topic:

meridional circulation

an atmospheric circulation in a vertical plane oriented along a meridian; it consists of the vertical and the meridional (north or south) components of motion only.

Topic:

mesopause

top of the mesosphere, situated at about 80-85 kilometers (50-53 miles).

Topic:

mesosphere

the region of the atmosphere between about 50 kilometers (31 miles) and 80-85 kilometers (50-53 miles), extending from the top of the stratosphere to the upper temperature minimum; it is characterized by a broad temperature maximum (near 0 degrees Celsius) at its base, from which the temperature decreases to a minimum (about -90 degrees Celsius) at the mesopause level.

Topic:

metamorphism

changes in the structure and texture of snow grains which result from variations in temperature, migration of liquid water and water vapor, and pressure within the snow cover.

Topic:

snow

meteorological element

any one of the properties or conditions of the atmosphere which together specify the weather at a given place for any particular time (for example, air temperature, pressure, wind, humidity, thunderstorm and fog).

Topic:

meteorology

study of the atmosphere and its phenomena, including its structure, properties, and physical processes.

Topic:

micro-scale polygon

closed, multi-sided, roughly equidimensional, patterned ground features, less than 2 meters (6.6 feet) in diameter; usually caused by desiccation cracking of fine-grained soil materials.

Topic:

microwave sensors

in terms of wavelength, microwaves range from 1 millimeter to 1 meter, and are much longer than the shorter visible (0.38-0.78 micrometer) wavelengths; these longer wavelengths allow microwave energy to penetrate through clouds; because these sensors measure microwave energy, they do not rely on sunlight for illumination so they can acquire images regardless of time of day; can be either passive or active; passive sensors detect and record naturally upwelling microwave energy emitted from objects; active sensors generate their own beam of energy, generally with an antenna, which then detects the returned energy patterns (backscatter) that indicate the presence of features and their position relative to the sensor; radar (radio detection and ranging) was an original active microwave sensor that became widely operational with the onset of World War II.

Topic:

middle-level clouds

clouds composed of ice crystals and water droplets in the middle region of the atmosphere, from 2,000 - 6,000 meters (6,500 to 23,000 feet); includes altocumulus, altostratus, nimbostratus, and portions of cumulus and cumulonimbus clouds.

Topic:

minerogenic palsa

a palsa in which the frozen core extends below the peat into underlying mineral material.

Topic:

mires

Also known as tundra mires, generally described as an area of wet, soggy, muddy ground., and often feature a layer of peat over permafrost.

Topic:

mixed precipitation

precipitation consisting of a mixture of rain and wet snow; it usually occurs when the temperature of the air layer near the ground is slightly above freezing; the British term for this mixture is sleet (which has a different meaning in the United States).

Topic:

moraine

a mound, ridge, or other distinct accumulation of glacial till.

Lateral and terminal moraines of a valley glacier, Bylot Island, Canada. The glacier formed a massive sharp-crested lateral moraine at the maximum of its expansion during the Little Ice Age. The more rounded terminal moraine at the front consists of medial moraines that were created by the junction of tributary glaciers upstream. (Photo courtesy of the Natural Resources Canada. Copyright Terrain Sciences Division, Geological Survey of Canada.)

Topic:

moraine shoal

glacial moraine that has formed a shallow place in water.

Topic:

moulin

a nearly vertical channel in ice that is formed by flowing water; usually found after a relatively flat section of glacier in a region of transverse crevasses; also called a pothole.

Topic:

mountain glacier

a glacier that is confined by surrounding mountain terrain; also called an alpine glacier.

Muddy River Glacier carves its way through forested mountains near Frederick Sound in southeast Alaska. Typical of mountain glaciers, it is constrained on all sides by mountainous terrain. (Photo courtesy of the U. S. Navy, archived at the World Data Center for Glaciology, Boulder, CO.)

Topic:

mountain permafrost

permafrost existing at high altitudes in high, middle, and low latitudes.

Topic:

mountain wind

a cold wind blowing down an incline; a kind of katabatic wind.

Topic:

mud circle

a type of nonsorted circle developed in fine-grained materials.

Topic:

multiple retrogressive slide

a type of mass movement associated with shear failure in unfrozen sediments underlying permafrost, leading to detachment of blocks of frozen ground that move downslope.

Topic:

multiyear ice

ice that has survived at least one melt season; it is typically 2 to 4 meters (6.6 to 13.1 feet) thick and thickens as more ice grows on its underside.

Multiyear ice. (Photo courtesy of Ted Maksym, United States Naval Academy.)

Topic:

sea ice

n-factor

the ratio of the surface freezing or thawing index to the air freezing or thawing index.

Topic:

needle ice

thin, elongated ice crystals that form perpendicular to the ground surface.

Topic:

negative mill

a geyser; a fountain that develops when water from a conduit is forced up to the surface of a glacier.

Topic: