The Cross Sections of Glaciated Valleys
The typical U-shaped cross-section of glaciated valleys is well known but little understood. If a climatic change results in a glacier occupying a deep river valley, and some erosion is assumed to occur wherever the ice makes contact with the bedrock, then a partial change from the “V” to “U” sectio...
| Published in: | Journal of Glaciology |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
| Language: | English |
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Cambridge University Press (CUP)
1947
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0022143000001222 https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0022143000001222 |
| Summary: | The typical U-shaped cross-section of glaciated valleys is well known but little understood. If a climatic change results in a glacier occupying a deep river valley, and some erosion is assumed to occur wherever the ice makes contact with the bedrock, then a partial change from the “V” to “U” section is to be expected. A more potent agency in such a change is probably the sapping of the valley sides by the alternate freezing and thawing of melt-water flowing down to, and under, the glacier. This has been briefly suggested by de Martonne and worked out somewhat more fully in the case of cirques 1 |
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