Agassiz Glacier (Montana) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Agassiz Glacier |
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Agassiz Glacier in 2005
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 Agassiz Glacier
Location in Montana
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| Type | cirque glacier |
| Location | Glacier National Park, Flathead County, Montana, U.S. |
| Coordinates | 48°56′02″N 114°09′28″W / 48.93389°N 114.15778°W |
| Area | 256 acres (1.04 km2) in 2005 |
| Length | .40 mi (0.64 km) |
| Terminus | Bare rock |
| Status | Retreating |
Agassiz Glacier is a special ice formation found in Glacier National Park in Montana, U.S. It is named after Louis Agassiz, a famous scientist who studied glaciers. This glacier sits in a bowl-shaped area called a cirque, near Kintla Peak. It is west of the Continental Divide, which is like a big ridge that separates rivers flowing to different oceans.
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Watching the Glacier
Scientists are closely watching Agassiz Glacier. It is part of a program by the U.S. Geological Survey. This program studies how glaciers in and around Glacier National Park are changing. They want to understand if glaciers are growing or shrinking.
How Scientists Study Glaciers
Scientists use different methods to study Agassiz Glacier. They use special equipment that can measure things from far away. This is called remote sensing. They also take many pictures of the glacier from the same spots over time. This is known as repeat photography.
Clues from Trees
In the past, scientists also looked at tree rings. Tree rings can tell us how old a tree is and what the weather was like each year. By studying tree rings, scientists could figure out how much the glacier had shrunk.
Glacier Changes Over Time
Agassiz Glacier has been getting smaller. Between 1966 and 2005, the glacier lost about one-third of its surface area. This means a big part of the ice melted away. Scientists continue to monitor it to understand these changes better.
Images for kids
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Agassiz Glacier, 1913
