Moraine

glaciers · geology · ice age

Glaciers are Earth movers. As massive sheets of ice creep across the land, they scrape up everything in their path, collecting rocks of all sizes from tiny grains to house-sized boulders.

Moraines mark the glacier's story. Terminal moraines show exactly how far a glacier traveled before it stopped melting back, while lateral moraines form along the glacier's sides like muddy tracks left behind.

A pile of mixed stuff. Moraines aren't neatly organized, they're jumbles of angular rocks, sand, and a fine powder called glacial flour all mixed together in no particular pattern.

Still visible today. You can see moraines in many places around the world, including the Great Lakes region and mountain valleys, showing where ice sheets once dominated the landscape thousands of years ago.

Different types tell different tales. Ground moraines spread out like blankets beneath glaciers, medial moraines form where two glaciers meet and combine, and each type reveals how the ice moved and changed.