How are glaciers formed?

Question

How are glaciers formed?

Answer 1

Formation of Glaciers

   A glacier is a large mass of moving ice that flows slowly over the land. The glacier flows so slowly that you can’t even see it move.

Glaciers are formed in high mountains or around the polar region. During the winter the snow piles up and the glacier grows. But during the summer some of the snow melts and evaporates. Year after year the snow piles up in layers. The increasing weight causes the snow crystals under the surface to become compact and turn into grainlike pellets called firn. At depths of 50 feet the firn is compressed further into dense crystals of glacial ice.

     As years pass the slab of ice gets bigger and grows thicker and becomes too big to stand still. The ice starts to move down the hill. When the ice moves it is called a glacier.

    During the summer some of the snow and ice melts but in some areas of the glacier the temperature doesn’t rise high enough to melt the snow and ice. Glaciers may also increase and decrease in size because of the changes in the climate around the glacier.  For example, the ice sheet on Greenland is shrinking because of the rise in the temperature in the area.

Answer 2

The bottom snow layers,  by the weight of the upper layers of snow becomes ice and the ice start to move like a solid river...

As the pressure in the bottom of the ice is increased, part of the ice is melted, and the water acts as a lubricant so the ice starts to move like a river.

The water/ice is the only  pair where the solid floats in the liquid. That is a special exception... a miracle!. Without that miracle the ice wouldn't move down or away of the mountains and poles.