Because of the extreme inaccuracy of maps produced for 1896, no areas or volumes are given (c). To see the approximate change in glacier area between 1896 and 1994, click on the summit of Mount Rainier to magnify the glaciers.
About the timeline on the left side of the map
The lower division of the timeline, the Pleistocene, actually extends from two million years ago up to the present. It is a period of time during which several global ice ages occurred. You can see how Mount Rainier and its surroundings might have looked during the late Pleistocene by clicking on 15,000 or 20,000 years ago. The upper division, the Holocene, is period of global warming, during which time the world's glaciers have retreated and sea level has rose. To see how Mount Rainier's glaciers changed during the late Holocene, click on 1913, 1974, or 1994. The red and blue bar next to the Holocene and Pleistocene bars show average global temperature during the past 20,000 years. The dark and medium blue bands show period of global cooling (ice ages). The red and pink bands show periods of global warming. Dark blue is coldest and bright red is warmest (c).
To take a closer look at Mount Rainier and its glaciers, click on the summit of the mountain.
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