Glaciers Reading Ielts Answers and Questions

The Blog post contains the following IELTS Reading Questions:

  • IIELTS Reading Matching Headings
  • IELTS Reading True False Not Given
  • IELTS Reading Matching Features

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Glaciers IELTS reading passage

Glaciers

A.Other than the world’s seas, glacier ice is the most productive source of water on the earth. A glacier is a giant ice rivulet or sheet that flows beneath its own poundage. Some glaciers flow down mountains or valleys, while others stretch out over a vast area of ground. Continental glaciers refer to heavily ice-covered areas such as Greenland and Antarctica. These two ice sheets account for almost 95% of the world’s glacial ice. In some locales, the Greenland ice sheet is about 3,000 feet thick, and the weight of this glacier is so lavish that a gigantic part of the territory has been dropped below sea level. Alpine or valley glaciers are smaller glaciers that appear at higher altitudes. Glaciers can also be categorized based on their interior temperature. Within moderate glaciers, the ice is near the melting point. In contrast, polar glaciers usually hold temperatures well below the melting point.

B.There are glaciers on every continent, including Africa and Oceania. The bulk of the world’s glaciers is discovered around the poles. The reason glaciers are commonly found in high alpine locations is that they need year-round freezing temperatures. In these areas where summer ablation (mass loss) is minimal, snow recasts into consolidated fim and finally ice crystals. During times when melting and evaporation outweigh snowfall, glaciers will recede rather than advance. In addition to snowfall, myriad climatic variables like as freezing rain, avalanches, and wind contribute to the creation of glaciers. One year of below-average drizzle can significantly impede the growth of a glacier. The moderate glacier flows roughly 10 inches per day in the summer and 5 inches per day in the winter, with the remarkable peculiarity of pouring glaciers. In 1953, the Kutiah Glacier in Pakistan extended more than 12 kilometers in just three months, setting a record for the most immediate glacier advance on record.

C.The upsurge in ice weight and stress drive glacier activity. Through moldable deformation and basal slippage, glaciers move away from themselves. First, the internal flow of ice crystals begins to grow outward and downward from the spot of assemblage, also known as the thicker snowpack. The ice along the consistency of the earth then begins to slide in the same compass. Seasonal thawing at the glacier’s base aids in facilitating this slide. Because no rocks produce friction, a glacier’s center traverses more rapid than its edges and base. The glacier’s top share rides on the ice beneath it. As a glacier advances, it forms a U-shaped valley similar to a riverbed, with significantly steeper sides and a flatter floor.

D.In addition to the spectacular ice rivers, glacial erosion creates horns, fjords, hanging valleys, and cirques. Before a glacier recedes, the bulk of these landforms cannot be seen. The moraines that grow on the glacier’s sides and front are numerous. When debris is collected along a road and deposited elsewhere, moraines are formed. When there are many alpine glaciers on a single mountain, these moraines may create a horn. The Matterhorn is one of the most recognized horns in the Swiss Alps. Fjords are coastal valleys that fill with ocean water as a consequence of the retreat of glaciers in Norway. When two or more glacier valleys connect at varying heights, hanging valleys are formed. It is normal for waterfalls, such as those in Voyageur National Park, to connect higher and lower-hanging valleys. A cirque is a large bowl-shaped valley that develops at the front of a glacier. When the ice melts, cirques sometimes have a deep enough lip on their downslope to permit little lakes.

E.Changes in glacier movement and shape often occur over centuries or millennia. During the preceding Ice Age, glaciers are believed to have covered roughly 32% of the earth’s surface, while they today cover approximately 10% of the planet’s surface. The bulk of glaciers has retreated during the last century instead as opposed to advancing. It is unknown if this glacial activity is the result of human intervention or natural causes, but glaciologists may begin to understand environmental concerns such as global warming by monitoring glacier movement and correlating temperature and agricultural trends across hundreds of years.

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Glaciers IELTS reading questions

Questions 1-5

Reading Passage 1 has five paragraphs, A-E. Choose the most suitable heading for each paragraph from the list of headings below.
Write the appropriate numbers (I-VIII) on your answer sheet. There are more headings than paragraphs, so you will not use them all. 

List of headings

I. Glacial Continents
II. Construction and Development of Glaciers
III. Glacial Movement
IV. Glaciers in the Previous Ice Age
V. Glaciers Through the Years
VI. Types of Glaciers
VII. Glacial Impacts on the Landscape
VIII. Glaciers in federal gardens

(1). Paragraph A 
(2). Paragraph B 
(3). Paragraph C 
(4). Paragraph D 
(5). Paragraph E

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Questions 6-10

Do the following statements agree with the information in Passage 1?
Write answers for the questions 6 – 10.

Write

  • TRUE                if the statement agrees with the information
  • FALSE              if the statement contradicts the information
  • NOT GIVEN      if there is no information on this in the passage

(6).   Only at the north and south poles do glaciers exist.
(7).   Snow and other meteorological variables contribute to the formation of glaciers.
(8).   Glaciers often advance between 5 and 10 inches every day.
(9).   All glacier portions move at the same rate
(10). During the previous Ice Age, the average temperature was far lower than it is today.

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Questions 11-15

Match each definition below with the term it defines. 
Write the letters of the term, A-H, on your answer sheet.
There are more terms than definitions, so you will not use them all. 

Terms
Afjord
Balpine glacier
Chorn
Dpolar glacier
Etemperate glacier
Fhanging valley
Gcirque
Hsurging glacier

Definition
 (11). a glacier originated on a peak
(12). a glacier with temperatures well below freezing
(13). a glacier that progresses very fast
(14). a glacial valley created near the ocean 
(15). a glacial valley that looks like a bowl 

Improve your performance in Matching Features questions by clicking here to access our comprehensive guide. Learn how to match specific features or characteristics with the options provided in the IELTS Reading section.

Unlock your full potential in the IELTS Reading section – Visit our IELTS Reading Practice Question Answer page now!

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Renewable Energy IELTS Reading Question with Answer

Glaciers IELTS reading answers

1.Answer-vi- Types of Glaciers
2.Answer- ii- Formation and Growth of Glaciers
3.Answer- iii- Glacial Movement
4.Answer- vii- Glacial Effects on Landscape
5.Answer- v- Glaciers through the years
6.Answer-False
7.Answer-True
8.Answer-True
9.Answer-False
10.Answer- Not given
11.Answer-B-Alpine glacier.
12.Answer-D-polar glacier
13.Answer-H-Surging glacier
14.Answer-A-Fjords
15.Answer- G-Cirque

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