1. a vertical shaft in a glacier formed by meltwater flowing down through the ice
Usage: geology

Examples

• The researchers dropped instruments into the moulin to study water flow beneath the glacier.
• Meltwater cascaded down the moulin, creating a thunderous roar deep within the ice.
• The expedition team carefully mapped each moulin they encountered on the ice sheet.
• Climate change has increased the number of moulins forming on Greenland’s glaciers.
• The moulin extended hundreds of feet down into the glacier’s interior.
• Scientists use moulins as natural laboratories to understand glacial hydrology.