Ways of Ice

About Ways of Ice

Ways of Ice is a narrative science podcast about glaciers, climate, landscapes, and the human quest to understand the cryosphere. Written, produced, and hosted by glaciologist Ryan M. Strickland, the series explores ice as one of the great dynamic forces shaping Earth across deep time. Combining glaciology, geomorphology, climate science, physics, and the history of science, the podcast approaches Earth systems through conceptual models, scientific storytelling, and field observations from some of the most extreme environments on Earth. Episodes move between Antarctic ice streams, Himalayan glaciers, mountain landscapes, laboratory experiments, and the historical expeditions that transformed our understanding of climate and planetary change. Ways of Ice explores fundamental science questions: How do glaciers flow? How do ice sheets shape landscapes? Why do glaciers respond so sensitively to climate? How do scientists build models of Earth systems? What can glaciers reveal about Earth's past and its future? The podcast is written for a broad audience — including students, educators, and anyone curious about how glaciers and Earth systems work. No previous background in glaciology is necessary. At its core, the series is about the power of science. How observations, physics, and imagination allow us to reconstruct worlds we cannot directly see, from the hidden beds of Antarctic ice sheets to the climates of the distant past. Cover art by Anusha Goswami (2026)

Publisher

Ryan M. Strickland

Category

education · science

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

3 Jun 2026

Latest episode

12 Aug 2026

Latest episodes

5 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   12 Aug 2026

   05 - Temperature, Pressure, and Time

   In this episode of Ways of Ice, we ask a simple question: what controls glacier behavior? We explore three things that transform the behavior of ice: temperature, pressure, and time. We follow experiments and observations that reveal how ice, a brittle material, can slowly deform and flow like a fluid. Along the way, we meet John Tyndall and explore the strange physics of pressure melting and regelation. Then, we connect these 19th century discoveries to how modern glaciologists understand and model glaciers.

2. 

   1 Jul 2026

   04 - The Shape of Ice

   Why is glacier ice sometimes a brilliant blue? Where does a glacier flow the fastest? And why are some of Antarctica’s largest glaciers so vulnerable to climate change? In this episode, we set out on an imaginary hike from a glacier’s terminus into its high accumulation zone, stopping along the way to answer these questions. As we go, we discover that the geometry of ice controls far more than its appearance. Shape controls how glaciers flow, how large they become, and how they respond to a changing climate.

3. 

   3 Jun 2026

   03 - The Paradox of Flow

   In Episode 3 of Ways of Ice, we confront a central contradiction: how can ice be brittle as glass yet flow like honey? The episode explores the hidden mechanics of glacier movement, from basal sliding and regelation, to the historic 1840s rivalry between Louis Agassiz and James David Forbes over whether ice expands or flows. The physical paradox is ultimately solved in the 1950s by John Glen and John Nye. Through simple basement experiments, Glen discovered how ice deforms. This breakthrough established that a glacier's shape is entirely dictated by physics, providing the mathematical foundation for all modern climate and sea-level rise models.

4. 

   3 Jun 2026

   02 - The Paradox of Melt

   In Episode 2 of Ways of Ice, we explore one of the central paradoxes of glaciology: glaciers can grow and melt at the same time. Through the concepts of accumulation, ablation, and mass balance, this episode explains how glaciers respond to climate and why glacier health cannot be understood through temperature alone. Along the way, we investigate why glaciers exist in places that are often warm, wet, and melting, and how scientists use the equilibrium line to measure whether glaciers are growing or shrinking. By the end, glaciers emerge not as static blocks of ice, but as dynamic systems constantly balancing gain against loss.

5. 

   3 Jun 2026

   01 - The Paradox of Scale

   In the first episode of Ways of Ice, we begin with one of the great polar expeditions: Fridtjof Nansen’s daring 1888 crossing of Greenland. From that story, we confront a deceptively simple question: how much ice is there on Earth? Exploring glaciers from mountain valleys to continental ice sheets, this episode reveals the astonishing scale of Earth’s ice and why even small changes to it can reshape coastlines, climate, and landscapes worldwide. Along the way, we begin to see glaciers not as isolated curiosities, but as planetary systems that influence the entire Earth.

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

2 ratings

Spotify

5.0 / 5

9 ratings

Contact Ways of Ice

Guest appearances

Does not typically book guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.