- Columbia Glacier (Washington)
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Columbia Glacier 
Columbia Glacier in left background, looking North.[1]Type Mountain glacier Location Snohomish County, Washington, USA Coordinates 47°57′44″N 121°20′52″W / 47.9623296°N 121.3478845°WCoordinates: 47°57′44″N 121°20′52″W / 47.9623296°N 121.3478845°W[2] Area 0.33 square miles (0.87 km²) Length 1 mile (1.6 km) est. Thickness < 246 feet (75 m) Terminus Moraine Status Retreating - See also Columbia Glacier (Alaska).
Columbia Glacier in early Fall as viewed from a Northwest Airlines Boeing 757 approaching Seattle from MSP.
Columbia Glacier is a glacier located in the Henry M. Jackson Wilderness in the U.S. state of Washington. It rises from 4,700 (1,432 m) to about 5,600 feet (1,706 m) above sea level. It is surrounded by Columbia Peak, Monte Cristo Peak, and Kyes Peak and is a source of water for Blanca Lake and Troublesome Creek, a tributary of the North Fork Skykomish River.[3] The glacier retreated 278 feet (85 m) between 1979 and 2004. The retreat is due to recent reduced winter snowpack and more summer melting leading to negative mass balance. The glacier is in disequilibrium with climate and will continue to thin and retreat.[4]
Notes
- ^ "Blanca Lake, WA". TopoQuest. United States Geological Survey. http://www.topoquest.com/map.php?lat=47.95577&lon=-121.34148&datum=nad83&zoom=8&map=auto&coord=d&mode=pan&size=m. Retrieved 2008-10-29.
- ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Columbia Glacier (Washington)
- ^ USGS topographic maps accessed via U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Blanca Lake
- ^ Pelto, Mauri. "The Impact of sampling density on glacier mass balance determination". Department of Environmental Science, Nichols College. http://www.nichols.edu/DEPARTMENTS/Glacier/impact_of_sampling_density_on_gl.htm. Retrieved 2006-11-22.
See also
References
Categories:- Glaciers of Washington (state)
- Landforms of Snohomish County, Washington
- Washington (state) geography stubs
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