MOUNT RAINIER
GEOLOGY & WEATHER
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2021 Glacier Area and Volume Update

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).

2021 Glacier Area and Volume Update

Mount Rainier is the most glaciated volcano in the Cascade Range of the western United States and has more glacial ice on its edifice than all other volcanoes in the Cascade Range combined. Measuring rates of glacial ice loss during warming climates are critical to understanding the future impacts to riparian areas downslope of the glaciers, sediment production to braided rivers, aquatic impacts due to increasing stream temperatures, and many other important areas for park resource management. Glacial area has been delineated many times in the last century; most importantly in 1896, 1913, 1971, 1994, 2009, and, most recently, in 2015. Each of these extents represents a snapshot of the surface area of the volcano occupied by glacial ice during those years and provides an opportunity to visualize the health of the glaciers in the park over time.

Using aerially derived Structure from Motion (SfM) data acquired in September 2021, as well as other satellite and aerial imagery, glacier area for each of the 29 named glacial features is updated for Mount Rainier and presented here. From these source data, we have mapped not only the extent of ice but estimate the volume of ice from methods developed by other researchers in the past. Overall, our data shows a continuation of gradual yet accelerating loss of glacial ice at Mount Rainier, resulting in significant changes in regional ice volume over the last century. Regional climate change is affecting all glacial features at Mount Rainier, but mostly those smaller cirque glaciers and discontinuous glaciers on the south aspect of the volcano.

This page has been provided as quick reference for the latest glacial extent and volume respository for Mount Rainier as of the 2021 delineation. Links are provided to the following: (1) Some key conclusions from the 2021 study; (2) The poster presented at the 2022 Geological Society of America Annual Meeting in Denver, Colorado; (3) A Natural Resource Report (NRR) detailing the 2021 delineation effort; (4) Overall glacial extent and volume estimates; (5) Change in glacial area and volume between 2015 and 2016; and (6) Links to detailed information on individual glaciers.

Key Conclusions from the 2021 Study

Publications

There are two publications that are developed through this study:

Overall Glacial Extent and Volume Estimates (as of 2021)

Glacier Aspect (text) Aspect (°) Slope (°) Length (mi) Length (km) Max Elevation (ft) Max Elevation (m) Min Elevation (ft) Min Elevation (m) Area (mi2) Area (km2) Volume (mi3) Volume (km3)
Carbon North 353 20.22 5.02 8.08 12,212 3,722 3,617 1,102 2.752 7.127 0.1180 0.4919
Columbia Crest East 96 9.99 0.43 0.68 14,393 4,387 14,146 4,312 0.067 0.172 0.0006 0.0024
Cowlitz East southeast 121 23.18 3.48 5.59 11,137 3,395 5,232 1,595 1.423 3.685 0.0406 0.1693
Edmunds West northwest 287 23.58 1.27 2.04 10,105 3,080 6,958 2,121 0.450 1.165 0.0067 0.0279
Emmons Northeast 55 23.77 4.55 7.32 14,148 4,312 4,883 1,488 4.231 10.959 0.1582 0.6592
Flett North 356 20.18 0.41 0.66 7,951 2,423 7,120 2,170 0.140 0.363 0.0017 0.0069
Fryingpan Northeast 38 21.75 0.98 1.59 9,930 3,027 7,093 2,162 1.156 2.993 0.0223 0.0930
Ingraham East southeast 120 25.17 3.22 5.18 14,064 4,287 6,493 1,979 1.144 2.962 0.0294 0.1224
Inter North northeast 25 25.83 0.92 1.48 9,627 2,934 7,376 2,248 0.206 0.532 0.0025 0.0104
Kautz South southwest 193 29.39 2.59 4.17 14,131 4,307 6,917 2,108 0.603 1.561 0.0123 0.0513
Liberty Cap Southwest 233 28.82 1.69 2.71 14,088 4,294 10,565 3,220 0.801 2.076 0.0200 0.0833
Muir South 183 17.70 1.18 1.89 10,077 3,071 8,219 2,505 0.318 0.823 0.0043 0.0180
Nisqually South southeast 166 27.00 3.57 5.74 14,371 4,380 5,347 1,630 1.584 4.102 0.0434 0.1808
N. Mowich Northwest 322 25.23 2.56 4.12 12,189 3,715 5,429 1,655 1.895 4.907 0.0502 0.2091
Ohanapecosh East northeast 72 21.24 0.49 0.79 8,392 2,558 7,250 2,210 0.238 0.616 0.0028 0.0115
Paradise East southeast 124 24.07 0.41 0.65 8,425 2,568 6,850 2,088 0.224 0.581 0.0027 0.0114
Puyallup West 280 19.53 2.47 3.98 9,600 2,926 5,506 1,678 1.196 3.098 0.0317 0.1323
Pyramid South 185 22.73 0.59 0.95 8,881 2,707 7,673 2,339 0.068 0.176 0.0006 0.0024
Russell North northeast 28 22.03 1.70 2.74 9,675 2,949 6,663 2,031 1.045 2.706 0.0199 0.0828
Sarvent North northeast 30 32.11 0.36 0.58 7,304 2,226 6,033 1,839 0.147 0.380 0.0016 0.0066
S. Mowich West 272 26.08 3.78 6.08 12,839 3,913 4,897 1,493 1.400 3.626 0.0333 0.1387
S. Tahoma Southwest 219 23.90 2.00 3.22 10,811 3,295 6,625 2,019 0.752 1.947 0.0169 0.0706
Stevens East southeast 123 19.98 0.05 0.09 6,812 2,076 6,629 2,021 0.000 -0.001 0.0000 0.0000
Success South 184 28.93 0.74 1.19 10,625 3,239 8,477 2,584 0.153 0.396 0.0017 0.0069
Tahoma West southwest 243 24.45 4.00 6.44 14,334 4,369 5,510 1,679 2.484 6.433 0.0750 0.3125
Van Trump South southeast 168 27.75 0.30 0.48 8,602 2,622 7,540 2,298 0.045 0.117 0.0003 0.0014
Whitman Southeast 142 16.40 2.02 3.25 10,286 3,135 7,579 2,310 0.713 1.846 0.0187 0.0779
Wilson Southeast 142 25.65 1.31 2.11 10,801 3,292 6,735 2,053 0.564 1.459 0.0117 0.0487
Winthrop North northeast 20 24.48 4.86 7.83 14,305 4,360 4,852 1,479 3.354 8.688 0.1167 0.4865
Minimum -- -- 9.99 0.05 0.09 6,812 2,076 3,617 1,102 0.000 -0.001 0.0000 0.0000
Average -- -- 23.49 1.96 3.16 11,038 3,365 6,835 2,083 1.005 2.603 0.0291 0.1212
Maximum -- -- 32.11 5.02 8.08 14,393 4,387 14,146 4,312 4.231 10.959 0.1582 0.6592
Total -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- 29.149 75.495 0.8436 3.5162

Change in Glacial Extent and Volume between 2015 and 2021 (6 years)

Glacier Area, 2015, km2 Area, 2021, km2 Area, % Loss Volume, 2015, km3 Volume, 2021, km3 Volume, % Loss North or South Facing Summit or Cirque
Carbon 7.257 7.127 -1.785 0.5042 0.4919 -2.436 North C
Columbia Crest 0.180 0.172 -4.489 0.0025 0.0024 -6.087 South S
Cowlitz 3.990 3.685 -7.661 0.1888 0.1693 -10.333 South C
Edmunds 1.252 1.165 -7.013 0.0308 0.0279 -9.459 North C
Emmons 11.027 10.959 -0.615 0.6648 0.6592 -0.841 North S
Flett 0.406 0.363 -10.529 0.0081 0.0069 -14.118 North C
Fryingpan 3.245 2.993 -7.744 0.1038 0.0930 -10.425 North C
Ingraham 3.007 2.962 -1.494 0.1249 0.1224 -2.038 South S
Inter 0.574 0.532 -7.231 0.0116 0.0104 -9.754 North C
Kautz 1.611 1.561 -3.105 0.0536 0.0513 -4.224 South S
Liberty Cap 2.139 2.076 -2.950 0.0868 0.0833 -4.016 North S
Muir 0.875 0.823 -6.017 0.0196 0.0180 -8.132 South C
Nisqually 4.192 4.102 -2.132 0.1862 0.1808 -2.905 South S
N. Mowich 5.144 4.907 -4.614 0.2231 0.2091 -6.253 North C
Ohanapecosh 0.669 0.616 -7.969 0.0129 0.0115 -10.727 South C
Paradise 0.612 0.581 -5.107 0.0122 0.0114 -6.915 South C
Puyallup 3.258 3.098 -4.919 0.1417 0.1323 -6.669 South C
Pyramid 0.262 0.176 -32.869 0.0042 0.0024 -42.016 South C
Russell 2.892 2.706 -6.454 0.0907 0.0828 -8.710 North C
Sarvent 0.455 0.380 -16.327 0.0085 0.0066 -21.629 North C
S. Mowich 3.766 3.626 -3.699 0.1460 0.1387 -5.022 South C
S. Tahoma 2.002 1.947 -2.738 0.0733 0.0706 -3.728 South C
Stevens 0.033 -0.001 -103.015 0.0002 0.0000 -100.441 South C
Success 0.470 0.396 -15.689 0.0088 0.0069 -20.810 South C
Tahoma 6.787 6.433 -5.218 0.3362 0.3125 -7.065 South S
Van Trump 0.176 0.117 -33.578 0.0024 0.0014 -42.853 South C
Whitman 1.939 1.846 -4.798 0.0834 0.0779 -6.512 South C
Wilson 1.562 1.459 -6.586 0.0535 0.0487 -8.902 South C
Winthrop 8.977 8.688 -3.215 0.5087 0.4865 -4.370 North S

Some Interpretations of this data (Averages of the percentages):

Detailed Information on Individual Glaciers

Choose a Glacier: Carbon Glacier Columbia Crest Glacier Cowlitz Glacier Edmunds Glacier Emmons Glacier Flett Glacier Fryingpan Glacier Ingraham Glacier Inter Glacier Kautz Glacier Liberty Cap Glacier Muir Snowfield Nisqually Glacier North Mowich Glacier Ohanapecosh Glacier Paradise Glacier Puyallup Glacier Pyramid Glacier Russell Glacier Sarvent Glacier Sarvent Glacier South Mowich Glacier South Tahoma Glacier Success Glacier Tahoma Glacier Van Trump Glaciers Whitman Glacier Wilson Glacier Winthrop Glacier

References