Hubbard Glacier, Alaska

September 01, 2012

Hubbard Glacier, Alaska - adjusted

Photographer: Vince DeFrancisci
Summary Authors: Vince DeFrancisci; Jim Foster

This photo of the Hubbard Glacier in southeastern Alaska was taken from a cruise ship about an eighth of a mile (0.2 km) away. Stretching out to 76 mi (122 km) in length and 7 mi (11 km) in width, at its widest, Hubbard is the largest tidewater glacier in North America. Unlike nearly all of the other tidewater glaciers in Alaska, the Hubbard Glacier has been advancing toward, rather than retreating from, the Gulf of Alaska since it was first mapped in the 1890s. It's plodding along at a pace of about 80 ft (24 m) per year. The beautiful turquoise color of the ice at its 600 ft (183 m) high terminus, in the foreground, is a result of the longer wavelengths of sunlight (reds and oranges) being absorbed by myriad ice crystals. Thus, only the shorter wavelength colors (blues and greens) of light emerge. Photo taken on July 25, 2012.

Photo Details: Camera: NIKON COOLPIX P510; Focal Length: 44.5mm (35mm equivalent: 250mm); Aperture: f/4.7; Exposure Time: 0.0025 s (1/400); ISO equiv: 100. 

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