Glacial valley

A valley widened and deepened by moving glacier ice, commonly with a broad floor and steep sides that form a U-shaped cross-section.

Glacial erosion: The wearing away and transport of rock and sediment by glaciers. Abrasion and quarrying by glacier ice carve and enlarge the valley.
U-shaped valley: A valley with a broad floor and steep sides, commonly shaped by glacial erosion. Its cross-section is the characteristic profile of many glacial valleys.
Yosemite Valley: A glacially modified valley in California's Sierra Nevada, known for its steep granite walls. Its cliffs and broad floor display the scale of glacial sculpting in hard bedrock.
Lake: An inland body of standing water occupying a basin or depression. Overdeepened basins in glacial valleys can fill with water after ice retreat.
Glacial abrasion: The scraping of bedrock by rock fragments embedded in moving glacier ice. Embedded debris grinds the valley floor and walls as ice flows through.
V-shaped valley: A narrow valley with sloping sides that converge toward a river-cut floor. Its pointed cross-section contrasts with the broad floor of a glacial trough.
Yarlung Tsangpo Grand Canyon: A deep river gorge in Tibet carved chiefly by the Yarlung Tsangpo River. Its fluvial origin contrasts with valleys shaped primarily by glacier ice.
Glacial lake: A lake formed in a basin created or dammed by glacier activity. Valley overdeepening and moraine dams commonly create these lakes.
Glacial quarrying: The removal of bedrock blocks by glacier ice, aided by freezing and pressure changes. Quarrying steepens valley sides and deepens the trough.
Hanging valley: A tributary valley whose floor sits above the floor of the main valley. Differential erosion often leaves tributary valleys perched above glacial troughs.

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