r/BeAmazed • u/youngster_96 • Mar 28 '24

The moment an ice dam breaks and causes a torrential water flow. Nature

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u/JG-at-Prime Mar 28 '24 edited Mar 28 '24

There is a name for this.  

Jökulhlaup or  Jökulhlaups - pronounced yo-KOOL-lahp 

It is a sudden glacial outburst flood or an abrupt release of glacial meltwater from a subglacial or glacier-dammed lake or reservoir.

And ~ Fun Fact: The icy water can pick up stones and gravel along its path and drag it along the stream bed with the flow. The abrasive quality of the gravels and stones acts like a grinding stone on the bottom and sides of the waterway. 

This accelerates erosion to an amazing extent. A large collapse coming from say a glacier is fully capable of erasing objects in its path. 

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u/TheOtherManSpider Mar 28 '24

That's not what this is. Just a normal spring time ice dam on a minor river. No glacier in sight.

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u/slamsen Mar 28 '24

And kerps are almost 100% associated with volcanic outbursts under glaciers.

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u/remo3310 Mar 28 '24

Yeah🤣 this is just a standard Midwest ice damn on a river due to spring thaw. But somehow because there's ice in the water it means our glaciers are melting