Darwin Glacier (Kenya)

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/darwin-glacier-kenya

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. How high is Darwin Glacier (Kenya)?Approximately 4,700 meters (15,400 feet)
2. How big is Darwin Glacier (Kenya)?Continuously decreasing; precise current area is subject to ongoing measurement
3. What is the location?Summit region of Mount Kenya, Kenya
4. What is the scientific name?N/A (Geographical Feature)
5. What is Darwin Glacier and where is it located?Darwin Glacier is a rare ice mass on the top of Mount Kenya in Africa. It sits high up on the mountain where the air is cold enough for ice to stay.
6. Why is Darwin Glacier important for studying climate change?Scientists watch how the glacier shrinks to learn how warming temperatures affect ice. The ice also keeps records of past weather that help scientists understand climate history.

Cryosphere: All parts of Earth where water is in solid form, including ice sheets, glaciers, and snow.
Paleoclimatology: The study of past climates, often using natural archives like ice cores and tree rings.
Mass Balance: The difference between the amount of snow/ice gained and lost by a glacier over a year.