Tyndall Glacier
Hallett Peak and Tyndall Glacier
Map showing the location of Tyndall Glacier
Map showing the location of Tyndall Glacier
Tyndall Glacier
Location in Colorado
TypeCirque glacier
LocationLarimer County, Colorado, United States
Coordinates40°18′19″N 105°41′22″W / 40.30528°N 105.68944°W / 40.30528; -105.68944[1]
TerminusTalus
StatusRetreating

Tyndall Glacier is a small cirque glacier in Rocky Mountain National Park in the U.S. state of Colorado.[2] Tyndall Glacier is on the east side of the Continental Divide and in a cirque to the north of Hallett Peak. Tyndall Glacier is both an ice and a rock glacier, with the lower portions of the glacier being composed primarily of rock debris and a small portion of ice.[3]

Tyndall Glacier is named after John Tyndall, an Irish scientist and Alpine mountaineer who in 1861 first ascended the Weisshorn in 1861. He also made an early attempt on the Matterhorn prior to its first ascent. In 1861, Tyndall identified carbon dioxide as a heat-trapping greenhouse gas; the glacier that bears his name appears to be retreating.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Tyndall Glacier". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved August 19, 2012.
  2. ^ McHenrys Peak, CO (Map). TopoQwest (United States Geological Survey Maps). Retrieved August 19, 2012.
  3. ^ "Glacier Basics". Glaciers and Glacier Change of Rocky Mountain National Park. National Park Service. Retrieved August 19, 2012.


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