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Glaciologist
Studies glaciers and ice sheets — tracking their movement, melting, and impact on sea levels.
Did you know?
Under the West Antarctic ice sheet, the bedrock lies more than 2,500 metres below sea level in places.
How subjects help
- Geography: Map glaciers from satellite images to see how far they have shrunk over the years.
- Physics: Explain how a heavy glacier slowly flows downhill like a river of very thick syrup.
- Chemistry: Test air bubbles trapped in ancient ice to learn what the atmosphere was like long ago.
- Mathematics: Calculate how much the sea could rise if a large ice sheet keeps melting.
A famous name
Lonnie Thompson: Glaciologist who has drilled ice cores from tropical mountain glaciers to learn about past climate.
Try it yourself: Race two ice cubes
- Put one ice cube on the black paper and one on the white paper, side by side in the sun.
- Guess which will melt first. Write your guess down.
- Check every five minutes and note how much is left of each.
- Dark surfaces soak up more sunlight. What might happen to a glacier when dust or soot darkens it?
Glaciologists measure how quickly ice melts and why, because glaciers store fresh water for many people.
Also try: Be a weather watcher for a week.
Known for it in
Norway, Switzerland, Iceland, USA, Canada