MOUNT RAINIER
GEOLOGY & WEATHER
Hello guest! [ Log In ]
Glacier Info - Nisqually Glacier

NOTE: The data shown here is based on the 2021 glacier update at Mount Rainier, and should be considered the most up-to-date data on glaciers at the park (2023-04-06).

Nisqually Glacier
The Nisqually Glacier is on the south side of Mount Rainier and gives rise to the Nisqually River. It is the most visited glacier on the mountain with its lower end lying close to the Longmire to Paradise Road. It is one of the several glaciers that extend from the top of the mountain and was the route used by August V. Kautz and his party on their attempted summit climb in July of 1857. According to the editors of Northwest Discovery magazine the first use of the name Nisqually Glacier was in late 1870 when it was so named in a letter written by Samuel F. Emmons to Clarence King. (Reese, 2009)

Switch Glacier:

STATISTICS AS OF 2021 (Beason et al., 2023):
Aerial Extent:
1.584 ± 0.086 square miles (4.102 ± 0.222 km2) (Rank: 6 of 29)
Debris Cover - Based on data from 2015 (Beason, 2017):
0.634 ± 0.006 square miles (1.641 ± 0.017 km2) (Rank: 4 of 29)
Estimated Glacier Volume: (See notes below)
0.0434 ± 0.0152 cubic miles (0.1808 ± 0.0633 km3)
Highest Elevation (Head):
14,371 feet (4,380 m)
Lowest Elevation (Terminus):
5,347 feet (1,630 m)
Elevation Range:
9,024 feet (2,751 m)
Length:
3.57 miles (5.74 km)
Average Slope:
27.00°
Average Flow Direction (direction the glacier flows towards):
South southeast (166°)
Glacier Type:
S - Glacier Head Near Summit

CHANGE IN EXTENT, 1896-2021 (Beason et al., 2023):
Units 1896 1913 1971 1994 2009 2015 2021
Area, mi2 3.871 2.544 2.344 2.415 2.318 1.618 1.584
Area, km2 10.026 6.588 6.072 6.254 6.003 4.192 4.102
Area Change Between Periods

1913 1971 1994 2009 2015 2021
1896-1.327 mi2
(-3.438 km2)
-1.527 mi2
(-3.954 km2)
-1.457 mi2
(-3.772 km2)
-1.553 mi2
(-4.023 km2)
-2.253 mi2
(-5.835 km2)
-2.287 mi2
(-5.924 km2)
1913---0.199 mi2
(-0.516 km2)
-0.129 mi2
(-0.334 km2)
-0.226 mi2
(-0.585 km2)
-0.925 mi2
(-2.397 km2)
-0.960 mi2
(-2.486 km2)
1971--0.070 mi2
(0.182 km2)
-0.027 mi2
(-0.069 km2)
-0.726 mi2
(-1.880 km2)
-0.761 mi2
(-1.970 km2)
1994---0.097 mi2
(-0.251 km2)
-0.796 mi2
(-2.062 km2)
-0.831 mi2
(-2.152 km2)
2009---0.699 mi2
(-1.812 km2)
-0.734 mi2
(-1.901 km2)
2015---0.035 mi2
(-0.089 km2)
Percent Change Between Periods

1913 1971 1994 2009 2015 2021
1896-34.29%-39.44%-37.63%-40.13%-58.19%-59.09%
1913---7.83%-5.07%-8.88%-36.38%-37.73%
1971--2.99%-1.13%-30.97%-32.44%
1994---4.01%-32.98%-34.40%
2009---30.18%-31.67%
2015---2.13%

ESTIMATED CHANGE IN VOLUME, 1896-2021 (Beason et al., 2023):
PLEASE see important notes about this, below...
Glacier-specific Scaling Parameter, c:
0.026953
Units 1896 1913 1971 1994 2009 2015 2021
Volume, mi3 0.1473 0.0829 0.0742 0.0772 0.0730 0.0447 0.0434
Volume, km3 0.6139 0.3456 0.3091 0.3219 0.3043 0.1862 0.1808
Volume Change Between Periods

1913 1971 1994 2009 2015 2021
1896-0.064 mi3
(-0.268 km3)
-0.073 mi3
(-0.305 km3)
-0.070 mi3
(-0.292 km3)
-0.074 mi3
(-0.310 km3)
-0.103 mi3
(-0.428 km3)
-0.104 mi3
(-0.433 km3)
1913---0.009 mi3
(-0.036 km3)
-0.006 mi3
(-0.024 km3)
-0.010 mi3
(-0.041 km3)
-0.038 mi3
(-0.159 km3)
-0.040 mi3
(-0.165 km3)
1971--0.003 mi3
(0.013 km3)
-0.001 mi3
(-0.005 km3)
-0.029 mi3
(-0.123 km3)
-0.031 mi3
(-0.128 km3)
1994---0.004 mi3
(-0.018 km3)
-0.033 mi3
(-0.136 km3)
-0.034 mi3
(-0.141 km3)
2009---0.028 mi3
(-0.118 km3)
-0.030 mi3
(-0.124 km3)
2015---0.001 mi3
(-0.005 km3)
Percent Change Between Periods

1913 1971 1994 2009 2015 2021
1896-43.70%-49.64%-47.57%-50.42%-69.67%-70.55%
1913---10.56%-6.87%-11.94%-46.13%-47.69%
1971--4.12%-1.55%-39.77%-41.51%
1994---5.44%-42.15%-43.83%
2009---38.82%-40.59%
2015---2.90%
Important comments about the calculation of volume shown here

The calculation of glacial volume shown on this page is based on an analysis of two methods used at Mount Rainier in the past (Driedger and Kennard [1986]; and Nylen [2001]) as well as the most recent literature review for glacier area-volume scaling (Please review Beason et al. [2023] for an in-depth discussion about this issue). It should be noted that simply converting area to volume with an equation is extremely difficult and the values presented here have extremely large error margins (likely ± 35% or more). With that in mind, the values presented here should give you an estimate of the glacial volume and change in volume over time. Please use these data very carefully with those caveats.

The calcuation of the volume is as follows:

\[V_i = {(c_iA_i^{1.375}) + (c_nA_i^{1.36}) \over 2}\]

Where:
\(V_i\) = Average volume for the glacier in question (km3);
\(c_i\) = The glacier-specific scaling parameter (back-calculated from glacier area and volume in 1971 in Driedger and Kennard (1986); Method described in Beason et al. (2023). The value for the Nisqually Glacier is 0.026953 (this is also listed above the volume graph);
\(c_n\) = The back-calculated scaling parameter from Nylen (2001) of 0.0255; and
\(A_i\) = The measured volume of the glacier in question (km2).

This is essentially an average of the back-calculated Dreidger and Kennard (1986) and Nylen (2001) methods (D&K is in the first parenthesis; Nylen in the second). For example, for the Nisqually Glacier in 2021, you can find the following individual volumes:
Back-calculated Dreidger and Kennard (1986) Method: 0.0450 mi3 (0.1877 km3).
Back-calculated Nylen (2001) Method: 0.0417 mi3 (0.1739 km3).
Average of the two (above equation and values listed for 2021 here): 0.0434 mi3 (0.1808 km3).
Official volume estimate listed above, with error: 0.0434 ± 0.0152 mi3 (0.1808 ± 0.0633 km3).

As you can see, the D&K method tends to produce higher values and Nylen produces lower values; the average of these two methods probably estimates the glacial volume. Until further research is done in this area and we can develop a better method or equation to determine volumes, this is the method we are using to determine glacial volumes. For more information about this method, please read the methods section of Beason et al. (2023).

NOTES:

-- No Notes supplied --

RAW DATA: