Muldrow Glacier
The Muldrow is a surging glacier. The most recent surge event occurred in 2021. A Land Sculpted by Ice
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A quick exploration of glaciers in Denali (no audio) Life on GlaciersAll sorts of things are blown onto the glaciers by wind: small plants, seeds, pollen, tiny insects, sometimes even birds! Most of these things freeze and eventually die, but some things manage to survive on the snow and some even spend their entire lives on the glaciers. Glaciers in Denali are covered with algal cells, minute plants so small that they can’t be seen with the naked eye. These algal cells, or algae, provide food for other organisms. Food chains on the glacier are very simple when compared to food chains in other habitats, but they provide an elegant example of how energy flows through a system. The sun shines on the snow and the algae. The algae use the sun to produce food for themselves and are eaten by insects, such as springtails. The springtails may die, decompose and return their nutrients to the glacier, or they may become food for larger animals, such as beetles. The Glaciers of Mount McKinleyGlaciers cover one million acres, or one-sixth of Denali National Park. Like the many arms of an octopus, glaciers flow away from the mountains transporting hundreds of thousand of tons of ice each year. This ice eventually melts in the lower reaches of the glaciers and rapidly fills rivers with turbulent muddy water that flows into the oceans. The iconic image of a glacier calving ice chunks into the ocean cannot be seen here - these glaciers are more distant and rougher, eking out an existence high in the Alaska Range.
Redefining "Glacial Speed"This map shows how glaciers in Denali have changed over time. The map focuses on the section of the Alaska Range that passes through the park. Glaciers are found extensively throughout these mountains. Red areas represent the areas covered by glaciers according to surveys from the late 1940s through late 1950s. Blue areas represent the more recent glacial extents as surveyed around 2010. Areas where blue and red overlap, such as in the center of the map around Mount McKinley, indicate historic and current glaciers remaining in the same place. Blue areas with no underlying red indicate the few areas where glaciers have grown, such as at the surging Muldrow Glacier. Exposed red areas indicate where a glacier has retreated or disappeared. Small areas of red are present around the edges of the map, with more substantial areas of red present on the western and eastern sides. Learn More about Glaciers and Glacier Monitoring
Photo Gallery The Alaska Range22 Images Photos of the part of the Alaska Range which is in Denali National Park |
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Last updated: February 5, 2025