Crevasse

High school (ages 12+)
Geography

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/crevasse

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the environmental role?Act as conduits for meltwater, influencing basal lubrication and glacier flow dynamics
2. Why do crevasses form in glaciers?Crevasses form when the ice on the surface is pulled apart or slid past itself more than the ice can stretch without breaking. This usually happens when the glacier moves over uneven ground, hits an obstacle, or changes speed.
3. How deep can a crevasse go?A crevasse can be tens or even over a hundred meters deep, but it stops when it reaches the layer of ice that can bend instead of break.

Brittle Deformation: The tendency of a material to fracture or break when stressed, rather than deforming plastically.
Ductile Deformation: The ability of a material to undergo significant plastic deformation before fracturing.
Tensile Stress: A pulling or stretching force that tends to lengthen an object.
Rayleigh Scattering: The scattering of light by particles much smaller than the wavelength of the light, responsible for the blue color of the sky and ice.