Feature: Outwash Plain An outwash plain is a flat area of sand and gravel, found in front of a terminal moraine.
How an Outwash Plain Forms 1 As the ice sheet melts, huge amounts of meltwater flow out of it. 2 The water flushes large quantities of sand and gravel onto the lowland beyond the front of the ice. 3 As the meltwater loses energy, it deposits the heaviest material first, followed by the lighter material. Example: The Curragh, Co. Kildare, seen in the photograph below, is an outwash plain.
Glacial stream Terminal moraine Outwash plain 13. How an outwash plain forms
The Curragh
Question Time
1. At the end of the last ice age, describe what happened to the meltwater as glaciers began to melt? 2. What is an esker? 3. Outline what an outwash plain is. 4. Name one feature of meltwater deposition. (a) Explain how that feature was formed. (b) Name one example of that feature. (c) Draw a labelled diagram of that feature.