Was all of Alaska covered by glaciers during the Pleistocene Ice Age?
No--most of interior Alaska, south of the Brooks Range and north of the Alaska Range, was a non-glaciated grassland refuge habitat for a number of plant and animal species during the maximum Pleistocene glaciation. This ice-free corridor also provided one route for humans to move into North America.
Learn more: USGS Water Science School - Glaciers: Things to Know
Related Content
Which mountain in the conterminous U.S. has the most glaciers?
How long can we expect the present Interglacial period to last?
How old is glacier ice?
Are today's glaciers leftovers from the Pleistocene ice age?
How many glaciers currently exist in Alaska?
Is glacier ice a type of rock?
Where are glaciers found in continental North America?
Why is glacier ice blue?
How much of the Earth's water is stored in glaciers?
How would sea level change if all glaciers melted?
What is a glacier?
EarthView–As Glaciers Worldwide Are Retreating, One Defies the Trend
In this Landsat EarthView, one glacier in Chile bucks the global trend:
Fifty Years of Glacier Change Research in Alaska
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First Ever Digital Geologic Map of Alaska Published
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Melting Glaciers Increase the Flow of Carbon to Downstream Ecosystems
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Gilkey Glacier, Juneau Icefield, Alaska
Interactions between glaciers, bedrock, and surface debris on the Gilkey Glacier, Juneau Icefield, Alaska.
Coring on the Juneau Icefield, Alaska
An ideal ice core site is the highest, flattest glacier in a region. In 2016, a transect of 7-9 m ice cores was drilled on the Matthes Glacier, Juneau Icefield to determine if recent fires are affecting the glacier surface. (Photo: Lucas Foglia, used with permission)
Landsat View of Glacier Bay
A view of Glacier Bay National Park, taken on September 13, 2015. Credit: USGS/NASA Landsat Program.
Alaska Map with Contours on Glacier
Alaska US Topo map sample image of contours over Chedotlothna Glacier in Denali National Park and Preserve.
Central Alaska Range
View of central Alaska Range from the south.
Muir and Riggs Glaciers, Muir Inlet, Alaska - 1941
This northeast-looking photograph, on the southeastern side of White Thunder Ridge ,shows the lower reaches of Muir Glacier, then a large tidewater calving valley glacier, and its tributary Riggs Glacier. The séracs in the lower right-hand corner of the photograph mark Muir Glacier’s terminus. The ice thickness is more than 700 meters. Muir Glacier had been retreating
...Exit Glacier, Alaska (In Full Retreat)
USGS ecologist Kevin Lafferty visits the Exit Glacier in Alaska.