This is one characteristic that helps glacial geologists distinguish what kind of ancient glacial environment they are studying. Other regions, like Alaska, have large amounts of meltwater , so the deposits in the proglacial environment are thick and complex. It is important to note that the proglacial environment moves with the ice edge. As the glacier advances, the zone of proglacial deposition moves forward as well. As glaciers grow and retreat, the glacial environments are stacked on top of each other.
Some moraines form under the ice, others form in front of the ice.
Moraines at the edge of the ice front, end moraines, mark the change from the subglacial environment to the proglacial environment. Aerial photograph of the Cape Cod area. The Cape is a moraine, a large accumulation of glacial material that was bull-dozed by the ice. Photograph courtesy of Eugene Domack, Hamilton College. Terminal or end moraines can be quite large.