University of Utah geoscientists have used a novel technique to measure the size and movement of the Timpanogos Rock Glacier, revealing it contains significant amounts of hidden ice. The study suggests that Utah's rock glaciers may hold up to one billion metric tons of water, making them important water resource sites in an arid state.
Unlike conventional glaciers, rock glaciers appear as piles of rock that hide large masses of ice. Researchers used a gravimeter to measure minute differences in gravitational pull between rock and ice, allowing them to create a 3D image of the buried ice body. The Timpanogos Rock Glacier is estimated to be 83% ice and 17% loose rock, containing approximately 1.5 million cubic meters of frozen water.
The research indicates that rock glaciers are not merely remnants from the Ice Age, but are water stores that formed over thousands of years after glaciers melted. Scientists found that rockfalls can bury persistent snow in the upper parts of these glaciers, leading to ice addition. While some rock glaciers may melt out, the Timpanogos Rock Glacier is still adding ice today.
The findings were published in the Journal of Geophysical Research and Geophysical Research Letters. Using the relationship identified between surface area and ice volume, researchers estimate that the 50,000 known rock glaciers worldwide hold 48 gigatons of water, while Utah's rock glaciers may hold 1 gigaton, or 815,000 acre-feet of water.
