Glaciers in Canada

With around 200,000 sq km of glacier coverage, Canada holds a significant amount of the world's glaciers. Glaciers can be found in the West and the Arctic parts of the country. The scientists predict that 70 percent of glaciers in Alberta and British Columbia will be gone by 2100 due to climate change.

The Athabasca Glacier is located within the Jasper National Park in the Canadian Rockies, province of Alberta. It is one out of six principal parts that makes the Columbia Icefield. The Athabasca Glacier is also the most-visited glacier in North America. Its ice is always in a continuous motion, making forward a few centimeters each day! The glacier slowly flows down the valley like a frozen river. Because of the warming temperature, the Athabasca Glacier has been receding for the last 125 years. It has shrunk by half and has retreated over 1.5 kilometers, leaving the rocky moraines uncovered.

The Columbia Icefield, located within the Canadian Rocky Mountains, is the largest in North America. Saskatchewan Glacier lies partly in Banff National Park and Jasper National Park. It covers an area of about 325 sq km (125 sq mi) and is from 100 meters (330 ft) to 365 meters (1,198 ft) deep. Columbia Icefield receives 7 m (23 ft) of snowfall per year on average. Not all of the snow melts during the short summer, so the remaining snow turns into ice, creating mountain glaciers, the Athabasca Glacier being one of them.

The Saskatchewan Glacier is located in Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada. Situated around 120 km (75 mi) from the town of Banff, it can be easily accessed from the Icefields Parkway. Saskatchewan Glacier is the largest outflow glacier out of the Columbia Icefield. The glacier is about 13 kilometers (8.1 mi) long and covers around 30 sq km (11.5 sq mi).

The Peyto Glacier is located in Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada, within the Canadian Rockies. It is around 90 km (56 mi) away from the town of Banff and can be easily accessed from the Icefields Parkway. Peyto Glacier is an outflow glacier out of Wapta Icefield. Peyto Glacier has been receding rapidly since the second half of the 20th century and has lost about 70 percent of its mass.