When lava meets ice
During times of extensive glaciation, lava poured repeatedly from the summit vent of
Mount Rainier and encountered glaciers. In the contest between lava ows, rock, and ice,
glaciers at rst appear to be less durable. In theory, a lava ow can melt about ten times
its volume of ice, though it rarely does so. We commonly think of lava ows as bullish,
relentless, and unstoppable. However, observations at ice-clad volcanoes around the world
prove that glaciers can survive the onslaught of heat from lava ows. In some situations,
glaciers can exert some control over the movement of lava ows, and as such are the
architects of Mount Rainier. Consider these mechanisms.
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Lava ows tumble and disintegrate on steep slopes: Lava that ows over steep
slopes often breaks apart and plunges onto the glacier, where it cools as rock debris.
Sometimes the fragmenting lava ow forms a turbulent avalanche of scorching
hot rock and gas called a pyroclastic ow, which can sweep across the snow and
ice. Incorporation of snow and ice into the pyroclastic ow can cause the ow to
transform into a volcanic mudow (lahar). Lahar layers are found in river valleys
that extend from Mount Rainier.
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Ice-age glaciers act as physical and thermal barriers to lava ows: An advancing
lava ow melts downward through thick ice until it contacts bedrock, where it
chills and hardens, conned within the glacier. After the eruption, glacier ice often
ows across the hardened lava ow. By this mechanism, Mount Rainier gains
volume, and retains its glacier cover. Some of these lava ows, now partially
eroded, are visible as ledges on the anks of Mount Rainier.
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Thin ice and ice-free regions allow lava ows to travel far: Lava encounters less
resistance in the thin ice and ice-free ridges between thick valley glaciers. The lava
ow’s outer skin cools and hardens, while the interior of the ow remains uid and
travels many kilometers (miles) from the base of the volcano. Over time,
successive stacks of elongated lava ows have built ridges—from the bottom
up—in a pattern that radiates from the cone of Mount Rainier. Paradise Ridge,
Mazama Ridge, Rampart Ridge, and Emerald Ridge are some examples of this
phenomenon. This interaction is depicted in the graphic “How Lava Ridges
are Made.” The phenomenon can happen only when glaciers envelop Mount
Rainier, such as during an ice age.
Fire and Ice
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continued . . .
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