Tencho Glacier

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Tencho Glacier
Southern flank of Mount Edziza.jpg
Coffee Crater with Tencho Glacier in the background
Canada British Columbia relief location map.jpg
Red pog.svg
Tencho Glacier
Type Mountain glacier
Location Mount Edziza, British Columbia, Canada
Coordinates 57°38′59″N130°39′06″W / 57.64972°N 130.65167°W / 57.64972; -130.65167 [1]
StatusRetreating

Tencho Glacier is a mountain glacier in northwestern British Columbia, Canada. It is located inside Mount Edziza Provincial Park on the Tahltan Highland, an upland area of the Stikine Plateau. [2] [3] Tencho Glacier is the source of several small streams that flow from the Mount Edziza volcanic complex.

Contents

Etymology

The name of the glacier was suggested by the Geological Survey of Canada on November 15, 1979, and eventually became official on November 24, 1980. Tencho is derived from the Tahltan words ten and cho, which mean ice and big or great respectively. This glacier is so-named because it is the largest glacier of the Mount Edziza volcanic complex. [1]

Geography

Tencho Glacier originates from Ice Peak and Tennena Cone on the southern flank of Mount Edziza. [2] [4] Its southern terminus is surrounded by Kaia Bluff in the southeast, Coffee Crater in the south and Cocoa Crater in the southwest. Unnamed tributaries of Taweh Creek originate from the southwestern side of Tencho Glacier between Cocoa Crater and Coffee Crater. Shaman Creek originates from the southern end of Tencho Glacier whereas the eastern side of Tencho Glacier is drained by unnamed tributaries of Tennaya Creek. [2] Several unnamed tributaries of Sezill Creek originate from the western side of Tencho Glacier by Tennena Cone. [2] [4]

Geology

Tencho Glacier overlies the Ice Peak Formation, one of several geological formations comprising the Mount Edziza volcanic complex. [5] [6] Obsidian of the Ice Peak Formation occurs east and west of Tencho Glacier and possibly extends under the glacier. [6] Beds of coarse comenditic trachyte pumice belonging to the Sheep Track Member of the Big Raven Formation are exposed along the western edge of Tencho Glacier. They are up to 2 metres (6.6 feet) thick and were deposited by an eruption that probably originated from a deep, circular depression on the surface of Tencho Glacier north of Coffee Crater. A crescent-shaped ridge at the southern terminus of Tencho Glacier might be a glacially modified tuff ring that formed in a meltwater lake when the glacier extended onto the Big Raven Plateau. [5]

See also

Related Research Articles

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Mount Edziza, sometimes called Edziza Mountain or Edziza Peak, is a stratovolcano in Cassiar Land District of northwestern British Columbia, Canada. It is located on the Big Raven Plateau of the Tahltan Highland which extends along the western side of the Stikine Plateau. The mountain has an elevation of 2,786 metres, making it the highest volcano of the Mount Edziza volcanic complex. However, it had an elevation of at least 3,396 metres before its original summit was likely destroyed by a violent, climactic eruption in the geologic past. Mount Edziza contains several lava domes, cinder cones and lava fields on its flanks, as well as an ice cap that is characterized by several outlet glaciers stretching out to lower altitudes. All sides of the mountain are drained by tributaries of Mess Creek and Kakiddi Creek which are situated within the Stikine River watershed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cocoa Crater</span> Cinder cone in British Columbia, Canada

Cocoa Crater is a cinder cone in the Stikine Country of northwestern British Columbia, Canada. It is located 38 km southeast of Telegraph Creek and 8 m (26 ft) southwest of Mount Edziza. Cocoa Crater is one of the 30 cinder cones around the Mount Edziza complex that formed in the year 700. The ash around Cocoa Crater is quite deep, its summit is a jet black color and its summit is red. It is quite a different color from the brown color of Coffee Crater, which is to the south of Cocoa Crater.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Snowshoe Lava Field</span> Volcanic field in British Columbia, Canada

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The Sheep Track Member is a stratigraphic unit of the Big Raven Formation, part of the Mount Edziza volcanic complex in northwestern British Columbia, Canada. It consists of pumice from an explosive eruption that fell over an area about 40 square kilometres. The pumice is of comenditic trachyte composition and reaches a thickness of up to 2 metres along the western edge of Tencho Glacier.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Edziza volcanic complex</span> Volcanic complex in British Columbia, Canada

The Mount Edziza volcanic complex is a group of volcanoes and associated lava flows in northwestern British Columbia, Canada. Located on the Tahltan Highland, it is 40 kilometres southeast of Telegraph Creek and 85 kilometres southwest of Dease Lake. The complex encompasses a broad, steep-sided lava plateau that extends over 1,000 square kilometres. Its highest summit is 2,786 metres in elevation, making the MEVC the highest of four large complexes in an extensive north–south trending volcanic region. It is obscured by an ice cap characterized by several outlet glaciers that stretch out to lower altitudes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Volcanic history of the Northern Cordilleran Volcanic Province</span>

The volcanic history of the Northern Cordilleran Volcanic Province presents a record of volcanic activity in northwestern British Columbia, central Yukon and the U.S. state of easternmost Alaska. The volcanic activity lies in the northern part of the Western Cordillera of the Pacific Northwest region of North America. Extensional cracking of the North American Plate in this part of North America has existed for millions of years. Continuation of this continental rifting has fed scores of volcanoes throughout the Northern Cordilleran Volcanic Province over at least the past 20 million years and occasionally continued into geologically recent times.

Taweh Creek is a tributary of Mess Creek, which in turn is a tributary of the Stikine River in northwest part of the province of British Columbia, Canada. It flows generally northwest for about 25 km (16 mi) to join Mess Creek about 15 km (9.3 mi) northwest of Mess Creek's confluence with Raspberry Creek. Taweh Creek's watershed covers 159 km2 (61 sq mi) and its mean annual discharge is estimated at 4.32 m3/s (153 cu ft/s). The mouth of Taweh Creek is located about 25 km (16 mi) southeast of Telegraph Creek, about 60 km (37 mi) west-southwest of Iskut and about 100 km (62 mi) southwest of Dease Lake. Taweh Creek's watershed's land cover is classified as 41.3% barren, 21.1% shrubland, 20.7% conifer forest, 8.4% herbaceous, 8.1% snow/glacier, and small amounts of other cover.

The Klastline River is a tributary of the Stikine River in northwestern British Columbia, Canada. It flows generally northwest about 70 km (43 mi) to join the Stikine River, which flows southwest across the Canada–United States border into Alaska where it empties into various straits of the Inside Passage. The Klastline River flows through Mount Edziza Provincial Park which lies within the traditional territory of the Tahltan people. Klastline means "confluence" or "junction of waters" in the Tahltan language.

Edziza obsidian is a naturally formed volcanic glass found at the Mount Edziza volcanic complex in northwestern British Columbia, Canada. It occurs in at least four geological formations of the volcanic complex and was widely used by indigenous peoples during the pre-Columbian era. As a result of its widespread use, Edziza obsidian has been found in several archaeological sites throughout the Pacific Northwest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Big Raven Formation</span> Geological formation in British Columbia, Canada

The Big Raven Formation is a stratigraphic unit of Holocene age in northwestern British Columbia, Canada. It is the youngest and least voluminous geological formation of the Mount Edziza volcanic complex (MEVC); it overlies at least six older formations of this volcanic complex. The main volcanic rocks of the Big Raven Formation are alkali basalts and hawaiites, although trachyte is also present. They were deposited by volcanic eruptions in the last 12,000 years during the latest magmatic cycle of the MEVC. Alkali basalt and hawaiite are in the form of lava flows and small volcanic cones while trachyte is mainly in the form of volcanic ejecta covering an area of about 40 square kilometres. The Sheep Track Member is the only named sub-unit of the Big Raven Formation.

Kakiddi Creek is a tributary of the Klastline River in northwest part of the province of British Columbia, Canada. It flows north about 35 km (22 mi) through two lakes in a broad hummocky lowland to join the Klastline River, which in turn is a tributary of the Stikine River. Kakiddi Creek forms the northeastern boundary of Mount Edziza Provincial Park which lies within the traditional territory of the Tahltan people.

Tennaya Creek is a tributary of Kakiddi Creek, which in turn is a tributary of the Klastline River, part of the Stikine River watershed in northwest part of the province of British Columbia, Canada. It flows generally west for about 16 km (9.9 mi) to join Kakiddi Creek about 19 km (12 mi) south of Kakiddi Creek's confluence with the Klastline River. Tennaya Creek's watershed covers 63.3 km2 (24.4 sq mi) and its mean annual discharge is estimated at 1.50 m3/s (53 cu ft/s). The mouth of Tennaya Creek is located about 48 km (30 mi) southeast of Telegraph Creek, about 30 km (19 mi) southwest of Iskut and about 86 km (53 mi) south-southwest of Dease Lake. Tennaya Creek's watershed's land cover is classified as 31.3% barren, 26.0% conifer forest, 17.9% snow/glacier, 12.6% herbaceous, 9.9% shrubland, and small amounts of other cover.

Tenchen Creek is a tributary of Kakiddi Creek, which in turn is a tributary of the Klastline River, part of the Stikine River watershed in northwest part of the province of British Columbia, Canada. It flows generally flows northeast for about 8 km (5.0 mi) to join Kakiddi Creek about 13 km (8.1 mi) south of Kakiddi Creek's confluence with the Klastline River. Tenchen is a combination of the Tahltan words "ten" and "chen", which mean "ice" and "dirty" respectively.

Tsecha Creek is a tributary of Kakiddi Creek, which in turn is a tributary of the Klastline River, part of the Stikine River watershed in northwest part of the province of British Columbia, Canada. It flows generally west for about 16 km (9.9 mi) to join Kakiddi Creek about 5 km (3.1 mi) south of Kakiddi Creek's confluence with the Klastline River. Tsecha Creek's watershed covers 23.1 km2 (8.9 sq mi) and its mean annual discharge is estimated at 0.423 m3/s (14.9 cu ft/s). The mouth of Tsecha Creek is located about 44 km (27 mi) east-southeast of Telegraph Creek, about 26 km (16 mi) west of Iskut and about 73 km (45 mi) south-southwest of Dease Lake. Tsecha Creek's watershed's land cover is classified as 47.8% barren, 27.5% conifer forest, 13.1% shrubland, 10.3% snow/glacier, and small amounts of other cover.

Artifact Creek is a tributary of Stewbomb Creek and part of the Stikine River watershed in northwest part of the province of British Columbia, Canada. It flows generally southeast for roughly 13 km (8.1 mi) to join Stewbomb Creek, which flows into the Little Iskut River.In turn the Little Iskut River flows to the Iskut River, the largest tributary of the Stikine River.

Nagha Creek is a tributary of Kitsu Creek and part of the Stikine River watershed in northwest part of the province of British Columbia, Canada. It flows generally northwest and north for roughly 15 km (9.3 mi) to join Kitsu Creek, a tributary of Mess Creek, which in turn is a tributary of the Stikine River.

Shaman Creek is a tributary of Kakiddi Lake, the source of Kakiddi Creek, and part of the Stikine River watershed in northwest part of the province of British Columbia, Canada. From its source in the glaciers south of Mount Edziza it flows generally east for roughly 20 km (12 mi) to empty into Kakiddi Lake, an expansion of Kakiddi Creek, a tributary of the Klastline River, which in turn is a tributary of the Stikine River.

More Creek is a tributary of the Iskut River and part of the Stikine River watershed in northwest part of the province of British Columbia, Canada. From its source near Yeda Peak in the Spectrum Range south of Mount Edziza, it flows generally south and east for roughly 65 km (40 mi) to empty into the Iskut River, the largest tributary of the Stikine River.

The Mount Edziza volcanic complex (MEVC) in British Columbia, Canada, has a long history of volcanism that spans more than six million years. It occurred during five cycles of magmatic activity which were characterized by 13 periods of eruptive activity. This volcanism has led to the formation of several types of volcanic landforms, including cinder cones, stratovolcanoes, subglacial volcanoes, shield volcanoes, lava domes and lava fields. The 1,000-square-kilometre (390-square-mile) plateau comprising the MEVC owes its origin to successive eruptions of highly mobile lava flows. Volcanic rocks such as alkali basalt, hawaiite, trachybasalt, benmoreite, tristanite, mugearite, trachyte, comendite and pantellerite were deposited by multiple eruptions of the MEVC; the latter eight were produced by varying degrees of magmatic differentiation in underground magma reservoirs.

Tenchen Glacier is located on the eastern flank of Mount Edziza in northwestern British Columbia, Canada. It lies within an immense cirque whose headwall has breached the eastern side of Mount Edziza's summit crater. At the head of Tenchen Glacier are icefalls that drape down shear, 300-metre-high (980-foot) cliffs from the breached eastern crater rim; permanent ice fills the summit crater. Meltwater from Tenchen Glacier feeds Tenchen Creek which eventually merges with Kakiddi Creek.

References

  1. 1 2 "Tencho Glacier". BC Geographical Names . Retrieved 2024-01-11.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Telegraph Creek, Cassiar Land District, British Columbia (Topographic map) (3 ed.). 1:250,000. A502 (in English and French). Department of Energy, Mines and Resources. 1989. Archived from the original on 2021-05-02. Retrieved 2021-09-25.
  3. Holland, Stuart S. (1976). Landforms of British Columbia: A Physiographic Outline (PDF) (Report). Government of British Columbia. p. 49. ASIN   B0006EB676. OCLC   601782234. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2018-11-14.
  4. 1 2 "Tencho Glacier". Geographical Names Data Base . Natural Resources Canada . Retrieved 2024-01-11.
  5. 1 2 Souther, J. G. (1992). The Late Cenozoic Mount Edziza Volcanic Complex, British Columbia. Geological Survey of Canada. pp. 28, 213, 237, 267, 320, 231. doi:10.4095/133497. ISBN   0-660-14407-7.
  6. 1 2 Godfrey-Smith, Dorothy I. (1985). X-Ray Fluorescence Characterization of the Obsidian Flows From the Mount Edziza Volcanic Complex of British Columbia, Canada (PDF) (M.A.). Simon Fraser University. p. 49. Retrieved 2024-01-11.