These tours are typically as educational as they are entertaining. Listed below are some interesting statistics and factoids about Alaska glaciers. Glacier ice crystals are bent, stretched and distorted from the immense weight and downward movement of the glacier itself. Light is refracted multiple times as it passes through the ice, letting only the highest light wavelengths completely escape the ice crystals. Since blue is the highest energy wavelength of visible light, glaciers appear blue.
Ice Worms are the only known creatures that spend their entire lives covered in ice.
Ice worms are tiny, roughly three quarters of an inch in length. They are similar to common earthworms. Ice worms feed on wind blown pollens and algae that blow onto the glaciers from the surrounding mountains. Ice worms need to stay inside a very specific temperature range to survive, ideally 32 degrees Fahrenheit. When large chunks of ice break from a glacier and fall into the ocean.