Question

The Helheim glacier in Greenland enters the ocean in a 6.3 kilometer wide fjord. The terminus of the glacier retreated 7.5 kilometers between May 2001 and June 2005. How many square kilometers of glacier surface area in the fjord were lost between 2001 and 2005?

Answer 1

7.56 km²

Explanation:

Given data:

Width of the fjord, w = 6.3 km

Retreated terminus of the glacier between may 2001 and June 2005, d = 7.5 km

thus, the length lost , y = 7.5 - 6.3 = 1.2 km

now, the area is given as:

A = Length × width

on substituting the values, we get

A = 1.2 × 6.3

or

A = 7.56 km²

Hence, the surface area lost by the glacier in the fjord is 7.56 km²