Terminal moraine

A terminal moraine, also called an end moraine, is a type of moraine that forms at the terminal (edge) of a glacier, marking its maximum advance. At this point, debris that has accumulated by plucking and abrasion, has been pushed by the front edge of the ice, is driven no further and instead is deposited in an unsorted pile of sediment. Because the glacier acts very much like a conveyor belt, the longer it stays in one place, the greater the amount of material that will be deposited. The moraine is left as the marking point of the terminal extent of the ice. As a glacier moves along its path, the surrounding area is continuously eroding. Loose rock and pieces of bedrock are constantly being picked up and transported with the glacier. Fine sediment and particles are also incorporated into the glacial ice. The accumulation of these rocks and sediment together form what is called glacial till when deposited. Push moraines are formed when a glacier retreats from a previously deposited terminal moraine, only to push proglacial sediment or till into an existing terminal moraine. This process can make the existing terminal moraine far larger than its previous size. Dump moraines occur when rock, sediment, and debris, which accumulate at the top surface of the glacier, either slide, fall, or flow off of the snout of the glacier. The accumulation of till will form a terminal moraine as the glacier retreats. Ablation moraines form when a large piece of ice, containing an accumulation of sediment and debris, breaks from the snout of the glacial. Once it is separated and begins to melt, the debris found throughout this glacial piece is deposited to form a new terminal moraine. It is important to note that the more debris that is found within the ice, the longer it will take for complete melting to occur. Climate plays an important role in the formation of terminal moraines. As temperatures increase, glaciers begin to retreat faster, causing more glacial till to be deposited in the form of terminal moraines.