Refrigeration
The accumulated rock detritus at Ice Mountain's base forms a talus that is 50 feet (15 m) thick in some places. It creates a refrigeration effect. As cold air sinks into the talus pile during the cooler months it forms masses of ice and ice vents inside it. The ice vents are in a section about 200 yards (180 m) in length along Ice Mountain's southern flank.
Cool air is expelled from the ice in the warmer months. Vent air temperatures vary throughout the year, but the mean annual temperature can be as low as 2 °C (35 °F). Within the area of ice vents there are approximately 60 different pockets and the cold air escapes through more than 150 small openings in the talus.
The cool air affects surrounding air and soil around creating an area of boreal species and plant growth. Studies of Ice Mountain's geology, geomorphology, and micro-climatology since 2000 have shown that ice is no longer apparent after early June, but it is unclear whether this disappearance is due to climate change or the abandonment of historic ice storage strategies.
Read more about this topic: Ice Mountain