(
Geography/
Geomorphology)
(
Glacier Terminology)
A
mountain peak sticking up out of an
ice cap,
icefield, or
ice sheet, resembling a rocky island in a sea of ice (Cf.
Inselberg). The name comes from the
Inuit language.
Nunataks can be found in most ice caps and ice sheets:
Antarctica,
Greenland,
Iceland. During various
Ice Ages in the past, the peaks of many present mountains were nunataks, providing refuge for a few lifeforms. Obviously, conditions in these refuges were quite harsh, and probably drove spurts in these organisms'
evolution (
Punctuated equilibrium).