A Giant Frozen Secret Lies Beneath Utah: More Than A Billion Tons Of Ice, Says Report

Scientists have discovered that Utah's mountains could be hiding around 1 billion tons of ice beneath layers of rock and rubble. The ice is stored in formations known as rock glaciers. Unlike traditional glaciers, which are covered in visible ice, rock glaciers are largely hidden beneath a thick layer of rocks and boulders.

Researchers from the University of Utah studied the Timpanogos Glacier at the base of Mount Timpanogos to find out how much ice these formations contain.

Measuring the ice is difficult because the rocky material on top can interfere with traditional methods such as ground-penetrating radar. Instead, the researchers used a device called a gravimeter, which measures small changes in gravity to help reveal what is hidden underground.

The team collected 232 measurements around the Timpanogos Glacier. They then used statistical modelling to create a three-dimensional picture of the ice beneath the surface.

The results suggest that the rock glacier is about 83 per cent ice and 17 per cent rock by volume. The ice has an average thickness of about 18.8 metres, or nearly 62 feet.

Researchers estimate that the Timpanogos rock glacier contains about 1.5 million cubic metres of ice, equal to roughly 600 Olympic-sized swimming pools.

They then used the findings to estimate the amount of ice stored in rock glaciers across Utah. The state has 836 documented rock glaciers, which together are thought to contain around 1 billion tons of ice.

The amount is even greater across the wider western United States, where researchers estimate that rock glaciers contain almost 12 billion tons of ice. Worldwide, the figure could be about 48 billion tons.

The findings could help scientists better understand how much water is stored in these hidden ice formations.

Researchers say this is becoming increasingly important as climate change causes glaciers to shrink and change. Rock glaciers can also become unstable during periods of warming, potentially creating risks for areas and infrastructure downstream.

The study was published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface.