ae.01 Ice Ice Baby

Content

• Statement of inquiry
  • Scientific and technical innovators need to understand how power affects the processes that occur within systems.
• Factual questions [Remembering facts and topics]
  • How do alpine glaciers gain and lose mass?
• Conceptual questions [Analysing big ideas]
  • How is a glacier a system?
• Debatable questions [Evaluating perspectives and developing theories]
  • Alpine environments have a great and valuable beauty.
• Aims of this lesson
  • To explore alpine environments as natural wonders within extreme environments.
  • To understand that glaciers are physical systems within extreme environments.
  • To have knowledge and understanding of how snow changes over time to become glacier ice - as a process within a system.

Base knowledge and understanding

Context

The awe and wonder of alpine environments

Use Earth for web to explore the following:

• The longest glacier in Europe.
• Evidence of the glacial maximum of the Mer de Glace.
• A glacier you can ski on in Europe.
• The Trift Suspension Bridge, Switzerland.
• The largest glacier in continental Europe.
• The Aiguille du Midi and the Cosmiques Arête.

Task 1 - How alpine glaciers gain and lose mass

1. Add the diagram above to your notes for this unit along with a definition of accumulation zone, equilibrium line and ablation zone.

Task 2 - From snow to ice

2. Synthesis the information in these four sources to produce a flow chart that illustrates and quantifies the process of glacial ice formation.

3. Have a go at this exam style questions → Describe the transition from fresh snow to glacial ice.