A Glacier Snout - Terminus - The end of a glacier
Interestingly glaciers are in endless motion and the snout is always either advancing or retreating.
The location of the terminus is often directly related to glacier mass balance, which is based on the amount of snowfall which occurs in the accumulation zone of a glacier, further inland or higher up where it's colder, as compared to the amount that is melted in the ablation zone. The position of a glacier terminus is also impacted by localized or regional temperature changes over time.
What makes a Glacier?
A glacier forms when winter snowfall exceeds summer melting. Many years of the accumulation result in compacting of the base layers of snow, turning them to ice. The weight of the snow mass causes the ice to become flexible and move downhill. Glaciers must have sufficient ice mass to flow under gravity.