Periglacial Environments

Periglacial environments are areas that experience cold temperatures and freeze-thaw processes but are not covered by glacial ice. The term was coined by the Polish geomorphologist Walery Łoziński (1909) to describe the conditions found around the margins of glaciers and ice sheets. Today, periglacial processes operate across approximately 25% of the Earth's land surface — a far greater area than is actually glaciated.

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Distribution of Periglacial Environments

Periglacial conditions are found in:

• High-latitude regions — Arctic Canada, Siberia, Alaska, northern Scandinavia, Antarctica
• High-altitude regions — Alpine environments, the Tibetan Plateau, the Andes
• Mid-latitude areas during cold periods — much of lowland Britain experienced periglacial conditions during Pleistocene cold stages when ice sheets did not extend that far south

Key Definition: A periglacial environment is one where the mean annual temperature is below 0°C for at least part of the year, and freeze-thaw processes are the dominant geomorphological agents, but the area is not permanently covered by glacier ice.

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Permafrost