Material that had already been deposited is shoved up into a pile as the ice advances, and because most morain material was deposited by falling down not pushing up, there are characteristic differences in the orientation of rocks within a push moraine. A key feature enabling a push moraine to be identified is individual rocks that have been pushed upwards from their original horizontal positions. They form where a retreating glacier remained stationary for sufficient time to produce a mound of material. The process of formation is the same as for a terminal moraine, but they occur where the retreating ice paused rather than at the furthest extent of the ice. A recessional moraine in the French Alps.
Scale is provided by the two climbers in the centre of the image.
The terminal moraine forms at the snout of the glacier. It marks the furthest extent of the ice, and forms across the valley floor. It resembles a large mound of debris, and is usually the feature that marks the end of unsorted deposits and the start of fluvially sorted material. Top of Page Supraglacial Moraine Supraglacial moraine is material on the surface of the glacier, including lateral and medial moraine, loose rock debris and dust settling out from the atmosphere. Supraglacial moraine with underlying ice visible where a surface stream has cut down through the moraine Top of Page Englacial Moraine Englacial moraine is any material trapped within the ice.