Glacier Mill
Glacier mills are spiral-walled hollow shapes in the ice that have been created by meltwater flowing off the glacier surface or in crevices . The meltwater sets rock debris of various grain sizes in circular motion. They expand and deepen the glacier mill and are ground themselves in the process.
Glacier mills can reach a diameter of up to 20 meters and are mostly formed in flat areas of the glacier with horizontal crevasses . They can reach to the bottom of the glacier and be hundreds of meters deep.
For glaciology glacier mills play an important role because it is easy to get through it to the inside of a glacier. The name mill was derived from the grinding, mostly rotating runoff of the meltwater .
The remains of the ice age glacier mills, glacier pots eroded into the rocky subsoil , can be found in all areas of glacial glaciation.
Glacier mills are the prerequisite for sand cones .
