Glacier Bay By: Ari Kohl. What year did the park become an official National Park and why? Q: What year did the park become an official National Park.

Glacier Bay

By: Ari Kohl

Q: What year did the park become an What year did the park become an official National Park and why?official National Park and why?

A: Glacier Bay became a National Park on December 2, 1980 because of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA). This protects the wildlife and preserves the beautiful scenery. Glacier Bay National Park covered more than 3.3 million acres, a national preserve of 57,000 acres is also added.

Q: How was the park formed? (From How was the park formed? (From an Earth Science Perspective)an Earth Science Perspective)

A: Glacier Bay was formed near the end of the Little Ice Age about 400 years ago. Some glaciers were advancing toward each other. Steep peaks and rock exemplify glacial activity and mark advances and retreats.

Q: What type of rocks can be found What type of rocks can be found inside your park?inside your park?

A: The types of rocks are Proterozoic sedimentary rocks. These rocks are formed by the process of erosion, deposition, compression, and cementation this happens when the glacier makes an avalanche. They are 800-1600 million years old.

Q: What special landforms or features What special landforms or features are inside your park?are inside your park?

A: There are many glaciers, mountains and bodies of in Glacier Bay. There are over 50 named glaciers in the park some of the glaciers are the Grand Pacific and the Johns Hopkins. Bartlett Cove is a very popular place for hump back whales.

Q: How is the land inside your park How is the land inside your park currently changing?currently changing?

A: The glaciers are moving, the bodies of water are also moving with the mountains because of Plate Tectonics. Tide water and glaciers have been thinning because of reduced snow fall and warmer temperatures. In the summer there has been reduced cloud cover and precipitation. These are probable causes of this trend.

Q: What environmental issues are What environmental issues are currently affecting your park?currently affecting your park?

A: Global Warming is warming the glaciers so that they melt. This has been effecting almost all of the glaciers in Alaska. With this warmer temperature the glacier thinning rate has gone up.

Q: How is technology used to preserve How is technology used to preserve and maintain your park?and maintain your park?

A: Glacier Bay recycles, recycling is technology. The park sorts through trash and sends trash to Juneau to be processed. Any glass thrown away will be reduced to non-sharp particles to stabilize roadbeds. Any waste that can be composted will be composted and used as fertilizer. 65% of the park’s daily trash is recycled or reused helping to preserve the Earth.

Glacier Bay National Park

Interesting places.

Country Map

Park Map

BibliographyBibliographyWorks Cited

1. Banks, Allison, Fawn Bauer, Bill Eichenlaub, Chris Gabriele, Margaret Hazen, Wayne Howell, Tania Lewis, Gus Martinez, Ingrid Nixon, Whitney Rapp, Maya Seraphin, Lewis Sharman, Arch Thompson, and Tom VandenBerg. "The Fairweather Visitor Guide." The Fairweather Visitor Guide [Glacier Bay] Summer 2009: 1-32. Print.

2. Bay, Enter Glacier. "Information Page." Glacier Bay National Park. Web. 23 May 2010. <http://www.glacier.bay.national-park.com/info.htm>.

3. A Free United States Map. Digital image. 50states.com - States and Capitals. Web. 23 May 2010. <http://www.50states.com/us.htm>.

4. Glacier Bay National Park. "Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve - Glacier Bay National Park & Preserve (U.S. National Park Service)." U.S. National Park Service - Experience Your America. Web. 23 May 2010. <http://www.nps.gov/glba/index.htm>.

5. United States. National Park Service. U.S. Department of the Interior. Glacier Bay. Print.