🧊 Earth's Frozen Water

What you’ll learn

1. What Is the CryosphereDefine the cryosphere as all of Earth's frozen water and identify its many forms.The cryosphere is all the frozen water on Earth, in every form: ice sheets, glaciers, sea ice, snow, permafrost, and icebergs. Its name comes from an old Greek word for cold. It is a huge part of our planet, found mostly at the poles and on high mountains.
2. Where the Ice IsExplain where most of Earth's ice and fresh water are, and distinguish sea ice from land ice.Most of Earth's ice is at the poles, with the largest ice sheet in Antarctica and the second largest in Greenland. Around three quarters of the world's fresh water is frozen in this ice. Sea ice floats on the ocean, while land ice sits on ground, a difference that matters for sea level.
3. Why Frozen Water MattersDescribe why the cryosphere matters: reflecting sunlight, storing fresh water, and feeding rivers.The cryosphere does vital jobs. Its bright surface reflects sunlight to help cool the planet, it stores most of Earth's fresh water, it feeds rivers as mountain snow and ice melt each spring, and it provides homes for polar wildlife. Land ice also keeps water that would otherwise raise the sea.

Questions this course answers

Grounded in trusted sources

• NASA
• NOAA
• NSIDC

Every Wunder lesson is built from real, reputable sources — never invented.

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