MOUNT RAINIER
GEOLOGY & WEATHER
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Glacier Info - Inter Glacier

NOTE: The data shown here is based on the 2021 glacier update at Mount Rainier, and should be considered the most up-to-date data on glaciers at the park (2023-04-06).

Inter Glacier
This small glacier between the Winthrop and Emmons Glaciers on the Mountain was named in 1896 '...from the fact that it does not head in the upper slopes, neither is it a tributary of any other glacier.' It is located below Steamboat Prow. The name is sometimes recorded as Inter Glacier and is the source of the Inter Fork of the White River.  (Reese, 2009)

Switch Glacier:

STATISTICS AS OF 2021 (Beason et al., 2023):
Aerial Extent:
0.206 ± 0.013 square miles (0.532 ± 0.033 km2) (Rank: 22 of 29)
Debris Cover - Based on data from 2015 (Beason, 2017):
0.006 ± 0.001 square miles (0.015 ± 0.002 km2) (Rank: 18 of 29)
Estimated Glacier Volume: (See notes below)
0.0025 ± 0.0009 cubic miles (0.0104 ± 0.0037 km3)
Highest Elevation (Head):
9,627 feet (2,934 m)
Lowest Elevation (Terminus):
7,376 feet (2,248 m)
Elevation Range:
2,251 feet (686 m)
Length:
0.92 miles (1.48 km)
Average Slope:
25.83°
Average Flow Direction (direction the glacier flows towards):
North northeast (25°)
Glacier Type:
C - Cirque Glacier, or Glacier Head Starts Below Summit

CHANGE IN EXTENT, 1896-2021 (Beason et al., 2023):
Units 1896 1913 1971 1994 2009 2015 2021
Area, mi2 0.220 0.441 0.323 0.319 0.257 0.222 0.206
Area, km2 0.570 1.143 0.836 0.826 0.665 0.574 0.532
Area Change Between Periods

1913 1971 1994 2009 2015 2021
18960.221 mi2
(0.573 km2)
0.103 mi2
(0.266 km2)
0.099 mi2
(0.255 km2)
0.037 mi2
(0.095 km2)
0.001 mi2
(0.004 km2)
-0.015 mi2
(-0.038 km2)
1913---0.119 mi2
(-0.307 km2)
-0.123 mi2
(-0.318 km2)
-0.185 mi2
(-0.478 km2)
-0.220 mi2
(-0.569 km2)
-0.236 mi2
(-0.611 km2)
1971---0.004 mi2
(-0.010 km2)
-0.066 mi2
(-0.171 km2)
-0.101 mi2
(-0.262 km2)
-0.117 mi2
(-0.303 km2)
1994---0.062 mi2
(-0.160 km2)
-0.097 mi2
(-0.252 km2)
-0.113 mi2
(-0.293 km2)
2009---0.035 mi2
(-0.091 km2)
-0.051 mi2
(-0.133 km2)
2015---0.016 mi2
(-0.042 km2)
Percent Change Between Periods

1913 1971 1994 2009 2015 2021
1896100.52%46.60%44.80%16.67%0.67%-6.61%
1913---26.89%-27.79%-41.81%-49.80%-53.43%
1971---1.23%-20.41%-31.33%-36.30%
1994---19.42%-30.48%-35.50%
2009---13.72%-19.96%
2015---7.23%

ESTIMATED CHANGE IN VOLUME, 1896-2021 (Beason et al., 2023):
PLEASE see important notes about this, below...
Glacier-specific Scaling Parameter, c:
0.023893
Units 1896 1913 1971 1994 2009 2015 2021
Volume, mi3 0.0027 0.0071 0.0046 0.0046 0.0034 0.0028 0.0025
Volume, km3 0.0115 0.0297 0.0193 0.0190 0.0141 0.0116 0.0104
Volume Change Between Periods

1913 1971 1994 2009 2015 2021
18960.004 mi3
(0.018 km3)
0.002 mi3
(0.008 km3)
0.002 mi3
(0.008 km3)
0.001 mi3
(0.003 km3)
0.000 mi3
(0.000 km3)
0.000 mi3
(-0.001 km3)
1913---0.002 mi3
(-0.010 km3)
-0.003 mi3
(-0.011 km3)
-0.004 mi3
(-0.016 km3)
-0.004 mi3
(-0.018 km3)
-0.005 mi3
(-0.019 km3)
1971--0.000 mi3
(0.000 km3)
-0.001 mi3
(-0.005 km3)
-0.002 mi3
(-0.008 km3)
-0.002 mi3
(-0.009 km3)
1994---0.001 mi3
(-0.005 km3)
-0.002 mi3
(-0.007 km3)
-0.002 mi3
(-0.009 km3)
2009---0.001 mi3
(-0.003 km3)
-0.001 mi3
(-0.004 km3)
2015--0.000 mi3
(-0.001 km3)
Percent Change Between Periods

1913 1971 1994 2009 2015 2021
1896158.89%68.71%65.88%23.47%0.92%-8.93%
1913---34.83%-35.93%-52.31%-61.02%-64.82%
1971---1.68%-26.81%-40.18%-46.02%
1994---25.56%-39.16%-45.10%
2009---18.27%-26.24%
2015---9.75%
Important comments about the calculation of volume shown here

The calculation of glacial volume shown on this page is based on an analysis of two methods used at Mount Rainier in the past (Driedger and Kennard [1986]; and Nylen [2001]) as well as the most recent literature review for glacier area-volume scaling (Please review Beason et al. [2023] for an in-depth discussion about this issue). It should be noted that simply converting area to volume with an equation is extremely difficult and the values presented here have extremely large error margins (likely ± 35% or more). With that in mind, the values presented here should give you an estimate of the glacial volume and change in volume over time. Please use these data very carefully with those caveats.

The calcuation of the volume is as follows:

\[V_i = {(c_iA_i^{1.375}) + (c_nA_i^{1.36}) \over 2}\]

Where:
\(V_i\) = Average volume for the glacier in question (km3);
\(c_i\) = The glacier-specific scaling parameter (back-calculated from glacier area and volume in 1971 in Driedger and Kennard (1986); Method described in Beason et al. (2023). The value for the Inter Glacier is 0.023893 (this is also listed above the volume graph);
\(c_n\) = The back-calculated scaling parameter from Nylen (2001) of 0.0255; and
\(A_i\) = The measured volume of the glacier in question (km2).

This is essentially an average of the back-calculated Dreidger and Kennard (1986) and Nylen (2001) methods (D&K is in the first parenthesis; Nylen in the second). For example, for the Inter Glacier in 2021, you can find the following individual volumes:
Back-calculated Dreidger and Kennard (1986) Method: 0.0024 mi3 (0.0100 km3).
Back-calculated Nylen (2001) Method: 0.0026 mi3 (0.0108 km3).
Average of the two (above equation and values listed for 2021 here): 0.0025 mi3 (0.0104 km3).
Official volume estimate listed above, with error: 0.0025 ± 0.0009 mi3 (0.0104 ± 0.0037 km3).

As you can see, the D&K method tends to produce higher values and Nylen produces lower values; the average of these two methods probably estimates the glacial volume. Until further research is done in this area and we can develop a better method or equation to determine volumes, this is the method we are using to determine glacial volumes. For more information about this method, please read the methods section of Beason et al. (2023).

NOTES:

-- No Notes supplied --

RAW DATA: