Submitted by Anonymous on Fri, 12/06/2013 - 08:44
Forums
Soil Ecology in Antarctic Dry Valleys

Hi Mr. Kendhammer.This is John Stilley of MEMS and I was curious about the glacier near Lake Hoare Camp. Correct me if I'm wrong, but don't glaciers move, and if that is true, wouldn't the glacier eventually crush the camp? Thank you!

P.S. my friend Ty wants to know if you can drink the mineral coming from Blood Falls.

Fri, 12/06/2013 - 15:01

Justin Kendhammer

Hi John,Interesting question. Yes, glaciers do move. In some parts of the world they are very active and mobile. 40 ft of movement in a year is not unheard of. One big difference with the glaciers here is that they are frozen to the ground. Glaciers in this area move but in the neighborhood of about 5mm per year. With this in mind it would be kind of comical to imagine a threat posed to the camp. That being said, the glaciers do release sheets of ice from the face. This is called calving. You do not want to be in too close when this happens. Tons of ice can come crashing down at once. A far less comical scenario.I'm not sure about how safe Blood Falls would be to drink. I would choose to not have any if offered. Kind of like a fear of heights or snakes, something in me says don't drink red water from the source.Thanks for the question.JK