accumulation

…a balance between income (accumulation) and outgo (ablation). If this mass balance is positive (more gain than loss), the glacier will grow; if it is negative, the glacier will shrink.

The rate of precipitation on the Antarctic Ice Sheet is so low that it may be called a cold desert. Snow accumulation over much of the vast polar plateau is less than five centimetres (two inches) water equivalent per year. Only around the margin…

…a snow bridge, built by accumulations of windblown snow.