. Elementary physical geography . e have very littleknowledge, for this part of the world is almost entirelyunexplored. Within a few years, our information concerning the Green-land ice sheet has become very much increased. Severalparties have examined it along the coast, and others havepassed into the interior of the Greenland continent. Near the margin, theice extends downto the sea, some-times as a solidwall, but usuallyin the form oftongues extend-ing down the*valleys. The icefront is oftenhundreds of feetin height, andwhen it extendsinto the ocean,bergs are fre-quently detached and floate
. Elementary physical geography . e have very littleknowledge, for this part of the world is almost entirelyunexplored. Within a few years, our information concerning the Green-land ice sheet has become very much increased. Severalparties have examined it along the coast, and others havepassed into the interior of the Greenland continent. Near the margin, theice extends downto the sea, some-times as a solidwall, but usuallyin the form oftongues extend-ing down the*valleys. The icefront is oftenhundreds of feetin height, andwhen it extendsinto the ocean,bergs are fre-quently detached and floated away. Passing from thisrather irregular margin toward the interior, there is anarea of rough ice which is difficult to traverse, and throughwhich there are some projecting mountain peaks, known tothe Greenlanders as nunataks (Fig. 181). These rise abovethe great ice field as the only parts of the land exposed to theair. Beyond a few miles from the coast, even these highmountain peaks disappear, and there is a great ice plateau,. Fig. nunatak rising above the Greenland ice sheet. GLACIERS. 315 generally over a mile above the sea, and in some cases hav-ing an elevation of about 10,000 feet. Whatever the topography of Greenland may be, thisimmense sheet of ice entirely obscures it, and it probablycovers a land which is mountainous in character. The sur-face of the ice in the interior is very smooth, and one maytravel over it with considerable ease. The movementappears to be in alldirections, from the ^^ central part toward *a&\ the sea, as if the ^ --v*- - ?::- ? accumulation weregreater in the in-terior than else-where. We canform no idea con-cerning the depthof this sheet ofice ; but it is amoderate estimateto say that it is cer-tainly several thou-sand feet in depth. Icebergs. — Thecold Arctic wintercauses the ocean surface to become frozen; and the movement of the waters,resulting from the winds, currents, and tides, often breaksthis ice and throws it into hummocks,
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