Cryosphere

The cryosphere (from Greek kryos for cold) comprises all frozen parts of Earth. These are to a large part the frozen water bodies of the mountain glaciers, polar ice caps and sea ice are part of the hydrosphere. Additionally, the permafrost regions, frozen parts of the soil, are part of the cryosphere.

In total Earth’s cryosphere covers about 10 percent of the Earth surface. Due to the climate change with rising global temperatures the cryosphere is shrinking.

Select your Case Study:

Glaciers, the frozen rivers
	Columbia Glacier, U.S.A. Higher temperatures and the rising sea level lead to a rapid decay of the Columbia Glacier.
	Aletsch Glacier, Switzerland The largest glacier of the Alps is an example of the retreat of alpine glaciers.
	Kilimanjaro Glacier, Tanzania There are not many glaciers in the tropical climate zone, and they are shrinking.
Polar Ice
	Arctic Sea Ice, Arctic Throughout the year the Polar Sea around the north pole is covered by ice. The extent of this ice cover is shrinking.
	Greenland, Denmark The Greenland ice sheet, the world’s second largest, is losing more and more of its ice.
	Antarctic Ice, Antarctica Antarctica holds not only the Earth’s largest ice body, but the Planet’s largest fresh water reserve.
	Iceberg A23a, Antarctica When ice shelves calve, huge icebergs such as A23a, which can survive for many years, can be the result.