Lake Glendive

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Lake Glendive
Map of the Glendive Quadrangle (pg 80).jpg
Map of the Glendive Quadrangle
USA Montana relief location map.jpg
Red pog.svg
Lake Glendive
Location Dawson and Prairie, Montana
Coordinates 47°07′12″N104°42′41″W / 47.119933°N 104.711266°W / 47.119933; -104.711266
Lake type Glacial lake (former)
Primary inflows Laurentide Ice Sheet
Primary outflows Over the divide to the Yellowstone River or along the face of the Ice sheet.
Basin  countries United States
Max. lengthabout 80 miles (130 km)
Max. widthabout 30 miles (48 km)
Surface area varied
Surface elevation315 m (1,033 ft)
References [1]

Glacial Lake Glendive was a glacial lake on the lower Yellowstone River. It formed in the valley of Yellowstone, during the late Pleistocene epoch south of the Keewatin Ice Sheet. As the ice sheet retreated northward, the lake drained into the modern Missouri River.

Ice of the Keewatin Lobe of the Laurentide Ice Sheet advanced westward into the Missouri and Yellowstone river valleys. The Glasgow sublobe blocked the Missouri River west of present-day Fort Peck, Montana, and created Lake Jordan and glacial lakes Circle and Lambert were formed to the east. The Yellowstone lobe spread south past Intake, Montana, and formed glacial Lake Glendive. At its maximum the ice may have blocked the Little Missouri River forming glacial Lake Mikkelson. [2] When the ice sheet began to retreat northward, the southwestern margin of abandonment its previous drainages and lakes formed in the depression along the ice margins. Melting of the Shelby and Havre lobes in western Montana led to the retreat of the ice into Alberta. By 16,200 B.C. the ice had created glacial Lake Carmichael in the area of the Cypress Hills. By 15,700 B.C. ice-free conditions may have existed in southwestern Saskatchewan north of Havre, Montana. [3]

Map of Montana showing Lake Glendive. Glacial lakes in Montana.jpg
Map of Montana showing Lake Glendive.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lake Jordan (Montana)</span> Glacial lake (former) in Montana along the Jordan River , .

Lake Jordan was a glacial lake formed during the late Pleistocene along the Jordan River. After the Laurentide Ice Sheet retreated, water melting off the glacier accumulated between the Rocky Mountains and the ice sheet. The lake drained along the front of the ice sheet, eastward towards the Yellowstone River and Glacial Lake Glendive.

Before the Pleistocene Ice Age, circa two million years before present (YBP), the rivers in North, South Dakota and eastern Montana drained northeast into Canada and then into Hudson Bay. The Keewatin Lobe of the continental ice sheet, block the flow of water northward and impounded it along the ice front. Lakes formed, until the waters could find a new way to drain. Initially, the north flowing rivers followed the front of the glacier eastward and into a valley that passed between Garrison and Riverdale, to the Turtle Lake area, and on into Sheridan County. This is known as the preglacial McClean River. This valley became blocked by the glacier and the glacial lake identified as Lake McKenzie formed. Eventually, water level rose to crest the south ridge a point near Riverdale — at the site of the modern Garrison Dam and a diversion trench was cut. The modern Missouri River follows this pathway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lake Circle</span> Glacial lake (former) in McCone at town of Circle and Dawson County, Montana

Lake Circle was a glacial lake that formed during the late Pleistocene epoch along the Redwater River in eastern Montana. After the Laurentide Ice Sheet retreated, glacial ice melt accumulated in the basin surrounded by the ridges of the preglacial valley and the retreating glacier. Southwest of Nickwall are the remnants of a broad abandoned valley with long side slopes. The valley runs north from Redwater Creek to the Missouri River. The bottom is poorly drained and about 1 mile (1.6 km) in width. It lies 2,015 to 2,020 feet above the sea level and 40 to 50 feet above the Missouri River bottomland. The upland slopes are extensive, clear and flat. The valleys surrounding it are dissected with V-shaped coulees. The difference between the Redwater valley and those around it reflect stream erosion vs. lake sedimentation. The drift in the valleys, appears to be as left by the glacier in the previously created valleys. Using the dating of lake deposits near Great Falls, Montana, the Havre lobe of the Laurentide Ice Sheet dammed the ancestral Missouri River during the late Wisconsin Glacial Period.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lake Musselshell</span> Glacial lake (former) in Phillips and Garfield Counties, Montana

The basin that held Pleistocene Lake Musselshell is in the lower (north-flowing) reach of the river. It is underlain mostly by highly erodible Cretaceous Colorado shale, Montana group sandstone, siltstone and shale, and Hell Creek sandstone and shale. The bedrock is gently folded and affected by local faults and joints. There is a sequence of nine terraces and more than 100 glacial boulders. The terraces are older than the erratics as the erratics rest on the terraces.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lake Cut Bank</span> Glacial lake (former) in Glacier, Montana along the Cut Bank Creek.

Lake Cut Bank was a glacial lake formed during the late Pleistocene along the Missouri and Sun Rivers. After the Laurentide Ice Sheet retreated, water melting off the glacier accumulated between the Rocky Mountinas and the ice sheet. The lake drained along the front of the ice sheet, eastward towards the Judith River and the Missouri River.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lake Chouteau</span> Glacial lake (former) in Teton, Montana

Lake Chouteau was a glacial lake formed during the late Pleistocene along the Teton River. After the Laurentide Ice Sheet retreated, water melting off the glacier accumulated between the Rocky Mountains and the ice sheet. The lake drained along the front of the ice sheet, eastward towards the Judith River and the Missouri River.

The Keewatin ice sheet was a major ice sheet that periodically covered large parts of North America during glacial periods over the last ~2.6 million years. This included the following areas:

References

  1. Physiography and Glacial Geology of Eastern Montana and Adjacent Areas; William C. Alden; United States Government Printing Office: Washington, D.C.; 1932
  2. A.D. Howard 1960
  3. Geologic Framework and Glaciation of the Central Area, 1-1-2006; Christopher L. Hill; Boise State University, Boise, Idaho; 2006

See also