Glaciers of Eurasia and permafrost


Glaciers. In the north of Eurasia and high in the mountains is widespread modern glaciation. Cover glaciers are found on the islands of Iceland. New Earth. Spitsbergen, Franz Josef Land. There are mountain glaciers in the mountains that reach the snow line: in the Alps, Scandinavian mountains, the Caucasus, the Pamirs, Tien Shan, the Himalayas. The glacial waters are fed by large rivers of Eurasia. Their waters are used to irrigate and meet the needs of cities.

Long-term permafrost. Evidence of a cooling that covered the North of Eurasia more than 10 thousand years ago is the spreading of permafrost on its territory. Permafrost is a frozen layer of rocks, the temperature of which is constantly below 0 ° С. In Europe, permafrost occupies the Far North, where only half a meter of soil freezes. In Asia, where there was almost no ancient covering glaciation, the upper layers of the earth’s crust froze. In this part of the world, permafrost covers almost 1/3 of the area. In some places the depth of the layer of frozen rocks reaches several hundred meters, and on the Central Siberian plateau in some places -1.5 km! In summer, the frozen layer thaws several dozen centimeters, and plants develop on it. The frozen ground does not allow water to melt, and numerous lakes and marshes form in the basins.


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Glaciers of Eurasia and permafrost