Glacial landscape This photograph was taken on the edges of Scotland’s Cairngorms National Par

Glacial landscapeThis photograph was taken on the edges of Scotland’s Cairngorms National Park, the largest national park by area in the United Kingdom. This landscape shows some extremely well developed and preserved glacial features.The piles of brown sediment, distinct in color from the grass at the base, are moraines. These piles of dirt and rock form along the edges and sides of glaciers. They are made of material that is either bulldozed to the side by the weight of the glacier and from material that is carried along inside the glacier and dropped when it ablates. Moraines at the edge of a glacier are called lateral moraines and the farthest extent of a glacier will be marked by a terminal moraine. If you look closely at the piles you can even see large rocks sticking out of them.The flat bottom, with a thin stream meandering back and forth, used to be beneath the glacier. When glaciers melt, they often form small lakes behind their moraines because the sediment piles don’t offer any way for the water to get out. Eventually, the terminal moraine will be breached somewhere, allowing a stream to carry the water out.The different types of sediment are covered with different types of vegetation, making them stand out beautifully in this case.-JBBImage credit: Tim Hayneshttps://flic.kr/p/AxEui2Read more:http://bit.ly/1XnxTechttp://bbc.in/1Igsq1Z -- source link

More pics about