TERMIUM Plus®

The Government of Canada’s terminology and linguistic data bank.

ZONE ABLATION [1 record]

Record 1 2005-04-08

English

Subject field(s)
  • Glaciology
  • Meteorology
DEF

That portion of a glacier surface below the firn line where ablation exceeds accumulation.

CONT

... accumulation and ablation doesn't occur equally over the whole surface of the glacier. Ablation dominates the snout of the glacier, where the climate is warmer and iceberg calving can happen. Accumulation therefore dominates the upper part of the glacier, where temperature is low and precipitation is suitable for snowfall. ... With increase of elevation the rate of ablation will decrease, and accumulation will tend to increase. So a glacier can be divided into two areas, an accumulation zone and an ablation zone.

OBS

ablation area: ... the opposite of accumulation area.

Key term(s)
  • zone of ablation
  • area of ablation

French

Domaine(s)
  • Glaciologie
  • Météorologie
DEF

Partie d'un glacier située en bas de la ligne de névé où l'ablation excède l'accumulation.

CONT

En aval de la zone d'accumulation se trouve une partie du glacier où l'ablation l'emporte sur les précipitations : c'est la «zone d'ablation». Le plus souvent c'est une langue glaciaire beaucoup plus longue qu'étroite. En général elle coule dans une vallée comme un véritable fleuve de glace.

Spanish

Campo(s) temático(s)
  • Glaciología
  • Meteorología
Save record 1

Copyright notice for the TERMIUM Plus® data bank

© Public Services and Procurement Canada, 2024
TERMIUM Plus®, the Government of Canada's terminology and linguistic data bank
A product of the Translation Bureau

Features

Language Portal of Canada

Access a collection of Canadian resources on all aspects of English and French, including quizzes.

Writing tools

The Language Portal’s writing tools have a new look! Easy to consult, they give you access to a wealth of information that will help you write better in English and French.

Glossaries and vocabularies

Access Translation Bureau glossaries and vocabularies.

Date Modified: