Höllentalferner
Encyclopedia
Glacier
A glacier is a large persistent body of ice that forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. At least 0.1 km² in area and 50 m thick, but often much larger, a glacier slowly deforms and flows due to stresses induced by its weight...
in the western Wetterstein Mountains. It is a cirque glacier
Cirque glacier
A cirque glacier is formed in a cirque, bowl-shaped depressions on the side of or near mountains. Snow and ice accumulation in corries often occurs as the result of avalanching from higher surrounding slopes....
that covers the upper part of the Höllental valley and its location in a rocky bowl between the Riffelwandspitzen
Riffelwandspitzen
The Riffelwandspitzen are two adjacent mountains in the Wetterstein range in Bavaria. The summit of the Great Riffelwandspitze reaches a heigh of , the summit of the Little Riffelwandspitze .- Situation :...
and Germany's highest mountain, the Zugspitze
Zugspitze
The Zugspitze, at 2,962 metres above sea level, is the highest peak of the Wetterstein Mountains as well as the highest mountain in Germany. It lies south of the town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, and the border between Germany and Austria runs over its western summit. South of the mountain is...
, means that it is well-protected from direct sunshine.
With an area of 24.7 hectares (61 acre) (as of 2006) it is almost as big as the nearby Northern Schneeferner
Schneeferner
The Schneeferner in the Bavarian Alps is Germany's highest and largest glacier. It is located on the Zugspitzplatt, a plateau south of the country's highest peak, the Zugspitze, that descends from west to east and forms the head of the Reintal valley...
, the largest glacier in Germany. It is about 1 kilometre (0.621372736649807 mi) long and up to 700 metres (2,296.6 ft) wide. It is the only German glacier with a proper glacial tongue. In spite of its relatively low elevation of just to , the glacier is not in acute danger because it is located in a deeply hollowed bowl and is fed by avalanche
Avalanche
An avalanche is a sudden rapid flow of snow down a slope, occurring when either natural triggers or human activity causes a critical escalating transition from the slow equilibrium evolution of the snow pack. Typically occurring in mountainous terrain, an avalanche can mix air and water with the...
snow (as a Lawinenkesselgletscher or "avalanche bowl glacier") and is therefore less badly affected by global warming
Global warming
Global warming refers to the rising average temperature of Earth's atmosphere and oceans and its projected continuation. In the last 100 years, Earth's average surface temperature increased by about with about two thirds of the increase occurring over just the last three decades...
.
In order to climb the Zugspitze through the Höllental valley the Höllentalferner has to be negotiated. Depending on the season the randkluft
Randkluft
A randkluft is the headwall gap between a glacier or snowfield and the adjacent rock face at the back of the cirque or, more loosely, between the rock face and the side of the glacier. It is formed by the melting of ice against warmer rock and may be very deep. During summer therefore, a randkluft...
of the glacier is a key point on the way to the Klettersteig.