ventisquero: is it really a glacier?
Mountaineers in Chile refer to snow masses high in the Andes as "ventisquero" and often avoid the term "glaciar". Is it a misnomer to refer to a real glacier as a ventisquero? I have the sense that a ventisquero is a semipermanent body of snow, encountered in the high mountains, but far less than a real glacier.
2 Answers
Ventisquero comes from Ventisca ( strong winds or storm that can be accompanied by snow and that develop more often in the mountains) by extension ventisquero is also the place up in the mountains where those storms tend to happen and the snow might accumulate. Unlike a glacier, the ventisquero is still - it does not flow like a slow river the way the glaciers do. I will think the snow/ice does not go as far back in ventisquero as in the glacier.
Yes, Ventisquero is a Black glacier . It is located near Chile, South America. Its origional name; Negro mesa agua; meaning black tabletop ice; is a large flat-topped glacier. It is nicknamed,"The Hanging Glacier It is said that no one really knows why it is black, it is just a beautiful sight-seeing tourist attraction! It is a glacier that is cutting through very thick black rock deposits rapidly, Moving only about two or more inches each year! In the website listed below is where you can find some amazing pictures of the "Amazing" hanging glacier! Tons of glacier deposits fall from the glacier each day, making the Black Glacier River!
www.travelblog.org/.south-America/Chile/blog-3406.html
