Glacier National Park By Lara Kennedy

The landforms and features inside the park The park is 1,583 square miles. It has 25 named glaciers and 185 named mountains. It has 762 lakes and 563 streams. The continental Divide runs for 106 miles thoughout the park. Going-to-the Sun Road and Logan Pass are very lovely sites.

When the park started and why? In 1891, George Bird Grinnell asked for Glacier to be a national park because of it’s beauty. It became a forest preserve.Glacier National Park got started May 11,1910 when President Taft signed a bill. In 1976, the park became a a Biosphere Preserve. The park was formed around 25 glaciers.

Where in the U.S.A. Land features & topography Maps of Glacier National Park

How the park was formed The park was formed by deposition, uplift and erosion. Most of the rocks were formed in a shallow sea environment called the “Belt Sea”. The oldest rocks in the park could be 1.5 million years old. Near the time of the dinosaurs, the mountains where thrust up; a huge piece of rock called Lewis Overthrust was shoved upward and eastward. The rocks have eroded, mostly during the Pleistocene Ice Age, when glaciers carved the valleys and mountains.

Rocks found inside the park The rocks that are found inside the park are some of oldest Proterozioc sedimentary rocks. The rocks changed very little in the past 800 million years. Some rocks have fossils called Stromatoites. The rocks have raindrop impressions, ripple marks, and mud cracks in them from millions of year ago.

What environmental issues are affecting the park? A Changing Climate The glaciers in the park are shrinking right now. More snow melts each summer than collects in the winter. Research in Glacier National Park, and worldwide, shows that the earth is warming. If this continues, the glaciers may melt away completely by the year 2030 or sooner. Many of the park ’ s plants, animals, and fish may be affected by this climate change. The park will be an important site for global climate change research in the future.

How is the land in the park changing? A 2003 count of the glaciers found 26 glaciers in the park. Recent information from 2005 suggests that the number is declining. They are not the remains of Ice Age glaciers. The glaciers in Glacier National Park were formed in the last 6,000 to 7,000 years. Many landslides have occurred in the park lately causing rocks and soil to move down the mountains.

How is technology used in Glacier National Park? Scientists research glaciers using geospatial technologies and scanned, digitalized aerial photographs. Scientists monitor glacial melting using remote sensing and geographic information systems. They use technology to communicate with science organizations, universities and researchers regarding climate change and global warming.

Bibliography “Park Facts.” Glacier National Park Student Resource Guide. CD-Rom “Glacier Past.” Glacier National Park Student Resource Guide. CD-Rom “Rocks and Glaciers.” Glacier National Park Student Resource Guide. CD-Rom “Climate Change and Melting Glacier.” Glacier National Park Student Resource Guide. CD-Rom

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