Aar Glaciers
Encyclopedia
The Aar Glaciers are glacier
s located at the sources of the Aar River in the Bernese Alps
, Switzerland
. They are constituted by two distinct glacier systems:
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...
s located at the sources of the Aar River in the Bernese Alps
Bernese Alps
The Bernese Alps are a group of mountain ranges in the western part of the Alps, in Switzerland. Although the name suggests that they are located in the Bernese Oberland region of the canton of Bern, portions of the Bernese Alps are in the adjacent cantons of Valais, Lucerne, Obwalden, Fribourg and...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
. They are constituted by two distinct glacier systems:
- Unteraar GlacierUnteraar GlacierThe Unteraar Glacier is the larger of the two sources of the Aar river in the Bernese Alps. It emerges from the association of the Finsteraar Glacier and the Lauteraar Glacier and flows for about to the east down to the Grimselsee near the Grimsel Pass...
: composed by the converging Lauteraar Glacier and Finsteraar Glacier, between the LauteraarhornLauteraarhornThe Lauteraarhorn is a peak of the Aarmassif in the Bernese Alps in Switzerland. It lies close to the Schreckhorn and the Finsteraarhorn...
, FinsteraarhornFinsteraarhornThe Finsteraarhorn is the highest mountain in the Bernese Alps and the highest mountain in the canton of Berne. It is also the highest summit in the Alps lying outside the main chain, or watershed. The Finsteraarhorn is the ninth highest and third most prominent peak in the Alps...
and GrimselseeGrimselseeGrimselsee or Lake Grimsel is an artificial lake near Grimsel pass in the Canton of Berne, Switzerland. With a volume of 95 mio m³, it is larger than other hydroelectric reservoirs in the region: Oberaarsee, Räterichsbodensee and Gelmersee. The dam was completed in 1932 and is operated by...
. - Oberaar GlacierOberaar GlacierThe Oberaar Glacier is a long glacier situated in the Bernese Alps in the canton of Berne in Switzerland. In 1973 it had an area of .-External links:*...
: between OberaarhornOberaarhornThe Oberaarhorn is a mountain in the Bernese Alps. It is located between the valleys of the Unteraar and Oberaar Glacier.-External links:*...
and OberaarseeOberaarseeOberaarsee is a reservoir in the Grimsel area, part of the municipality of Guttannen, Switzerland. The Oberaar glacier is located west of the lake. Its surface area is 1.47 km². The Oberaar dam was completed in 1953....
.