What is a paternoster lake?

What is a paternoster lake?

• A. One of a series of glacial lakes connected by a single stream or braided stream system
• B. A single deep lake created by glacier damming
• C. A lake formed in a caldera
• D. A tectonically formed lake

Answer: (A)

A paternoster lake is a chain of small glacial lakes that sit in a valley floor and are linked by a single stream or a braided stream system. They form in a glacial trough where the glacier has carved multiple bedrock depressions in a row. When meltwater fills each depression, a series of lakes appears, with water flowing from one to the next along the connected drainage. The name comes from the way the lakes resemble beads on a rosary, lined up along the stream. This is different from a single deep lake created by glacier damming, a caldera lake formed by volcanic collapse, or a lake formed primarily by tectonic faulting.

A paternoster lake is a chain of small glacial lakes that sit in a valley floor and are linked by a single stream or a braided stream system. They form in a glacial trough where the glacier has carved multiple bedrock depressions in a row. When meltwater fills each depression, a series of lakes appears, with water flowing from one to the next along the connected drainage. The name comes from the way the lakes resemble beads on a rosary, lined up along the stream.

This is different from a single deep lake created by glacier damming, a caldera lake formed by volcanic collapse, or a lake formed primarily by tectonic faulting.