Friday, May 13, 2011

Bering Glacier surge

Last week we did some flying in the Wrangell St.Elias mountains. The main purpose was to test an airborne radar. In the process we got to fly over America's largest glacier: the Bering Glacier. It is currently in a full surge and its surface is heavily crevassed.

The glacier is flowing several times faster than normal and is now in the process of advancing into a proglacial lake. Icebergs breaking off the glacier almost completely cover Vitus Lake now:

The glacier is heavily crevassed along its entire lower reach. Here is a shot looking up. The mighty St. Elias (about 5400 m or 18,000 ft above sea level) is in the far back (center), and Mt. Miller on the left:

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