Glacier Valley: What is it, how it is formed and examples

A U -shaped glacier valley is a valley type that is formed by the action of moving glacierssince these can advance and go back dragging rocks and material. Usually, they have a U -shaped shape for their width and depth and usually present characteristics such as morrenas and glacier lakes.

1. Glacier movement

The glacier begins to move influenced by gravity and slope to minor heights. This movement, facilitated by a layer of thaw water at the base and by internal ice deformation, begins to form the valley over thousands and millions of years.

2. Valley erosion

As the glacier advances, the terrain erodes through two main processes:

• Abrasion: The rocks and sediments trapped in the ice scratch and polish the rocky surface of the valley, creating stretch marks and grooves.
• PLUCKING): The ice adheres to the rocks of the bed and, when moving, it starts fragments that are incorporated into the glacier.

These processes transform the river valleys into “V” in glacier valleys in “U”, more wide and deep.

3. Transportation and deposition of sediment

The glacier transports eroded materials and deposits them in different areas when retiring. These accumulations are known as Moranas and are classified according to their location on the sides (along the edges of the glacier), central (formed by the union of lateral muras of convergent glaciers) and terminals (located in the final end of the glacier, marking its maximum extension).

4. Glacier Valley Formation

The result of this set of processes is a glacier valley with distinctive characteristics such as “U”, steep walls and secondary valleys that form waterfalls.

• Glacier circus: It is the birth area of the glacier, where the greatest amount of snow accumulates that is subsequently transformed into ice. It usually has huge circular buckets and located in high mountain dimensions.
• Moranas: Tills accumulations, that is, rocky fragments of various sizes that drag the glacier. Its size depends on the loading of materials that the glacier transports.
• Hanging valleys: They are tax valleys that flow into the main valley from a higher level. They were formed by smaller glaciers and, when the ice disappears, they are “hanging” (hence its name) on the walls of the main valley. They usually have waterfalls.
• Glacier lakes (circus lakes or tarns): They are lakes that are formed in depressions excavated by the glacier or where water was retained after the recoil of the ice. Generally, they are frequent in glacial circuses or behind terminal muras.
• Aborn Rocks: They are polished and rounded rock outcrops by the abrasion of ice. They show a smooth face (upstream) and another abrupt (downstream), indicating the direction of the glacier flow.
• Glacier stretch marks: The stretch marks are furrows produced by the abrasion and drag of the fragments transported by the glacier. They indicate the direction of the glacier when it has retired.

Here you have a list of ten glacial valleys present around the world:

• Yosemite Valley In California, United States.
• Leh Valley, Ladakh, northwest of the Indian Himalayas.
• MALYOVITSA VALLEYRila mountain, Bulgaria.
• Valle del Río de las Las Vueltas, province of Santa Cruz, Argentina.
• Valles Alerce and Manso del Monte Tronador, province of Río Negro, Argentina.
• Lauterbrunnen Valley, Switzerland.
• Glencoe ValleyScotland.
• Khumbu Valley, Nepal.
• Chamonix ValleyFrance.
• Valley of the rooms, Venezuela.

• Training: A glacial valley is formed by the action of the movement of a glacier that drags different types of sediments, while a river valley is formed by erosion and sedimentation caused by a river or stream over time.
• Process: The glacier acts abrasively on the ground, carving and wearing the rocks and sediments where it passes by creating moraines, stretch marks, among other structures. On the other hand, the water course models the land through erosion processes and sediment deposition
• Shape: The glacial valleys have a characteristic in U due to the deepest and broader erosion compared to river valleys. The river valleys usually have “V” shape in their upper section and can become wider and shaped like a meandro in the form of lower sections.
• Characteristics: The glacial valleys are typical in high mountain areas or cold latitudes where conditions allow ice accumulation over the years and the subsequent formation of glaciers. On the contrary, river valleys are common in areas of plains, large valleys, or transition zones, and have a continuous development due to the river water flow.

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