Which is the most glaciated volcano in the Cascades? Which is the second?
Home >FAQ
USGS Frequently Asked Questions
Question:
Which is the most glaciated volcano in the Cascades? Which is the second?
Answer:
Mount Rainier
(Washington) at 14,410 feet (4,393 meters),
the highest peak in the
Cascade Range,
is a dormant volcano whose load of
glacier ice exceeds that of any other
mountain in the conterminous United States.
Mount Rainier has 26
glaciers containing more than five times as much snow and ice as all the
other Cascade volcanoes combined.
Mount Baker
(Washington) at 10,778 feet (3,285 meters),
is an ice-clad volcano in the North Cascades of
Washington State about 31 miles
due east of the city of Bellingham.
After Mount Rainier, it is the most
heavily glaciated of the Cascade volcanoes: the
volume of snow and ice on Mount Baker
(about 1.8 cubic kilometers; 0.43 cubic mile)
is greater than that
of all the other Cascades volcanoes
(except Rainier) combined.
-- From:
Hoblitt, et.al., 1995,
Volcano hazards from Mount Rainier, Washington:
USGS Open-File Report 95-273,
Brantley, 1994, Volcanoes of the United States: USGS General
Interest Publication,
and
Gardner, et.al., 1995,
Potential Volcanic Hazards from Future Activity of Mount Baker,
Washington:
USGS Open-File Report 95-498.