How Mountain Glaciers Shape Earth and Drive Sea Level Rise

How glaciers carve giant fjords into mountains

NASA cryospheric scientist Alex Gardner explains how accumulated snow compacts into ice and carves out massive valleys and fjords as it flows toward the sea.

How Glaciers Carve Valleys into Massive Fjords

1% of Earth's ice drives 33% of sea level rise

Scientists reveal that warmer mountain glaciers in Alaska and Patagonia are melting so fast they account for roughly one third of sea level rise.

The 1% of Global Ice Causing One Third of Sea Level Rise

Why mountain glaciers are critical water towers

Alex Gardner highlights how glacier runoff in places like High Mountain Asia provides vital freshwater for irrigation, agriculture, and heavily populated river basins.

Why Millions Rely on Melting Mountain Ice for Survival

40,000-year-old preserved green grass underground

A scientist walks through an underground permafrost tunnel featuring preserved prehistoric mastodon bones and grass that remains green after tens of thousands of years.

Walking Inside a 40,000-Year-Old Frozen Time Capsule

[01:49] How Glaciers Carve Valleys into Massive Fjords
[03:27] The 1% of Global Ice Causing One Third of Sea Level Rise
[04:29] Why Millions Rely on Melting Mountain Ice for Survival
[05:21] Walking Inside a 40,000-Year-Old Frozen Time Capsule

How Mountain Glaciers Shape Earth and Drive Sea Level Rise

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