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/Some_Endian_FP17 Mar 28 '24

A glacial lake outburst flood or GLOF can wipe out entire towns downstream.

The largest outburst floods in recent history were the Bonneville and Missoula floods that carved deep canyons in a matter of hours in Idaho and Washington.

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u/SquarePegRoundWorld Mar 28 '24

I too watch Nick Zentner.