- Cirques are found high up in mountains.
- They have 3 steep sides and sometimes contain a lake.
- Snow collects in a mountain hollow high up in the mountain. After repeated snowfall, the snow compacts to form ice. This forms a glacier.
- Through plucking and abrasion , the hollow grows deeper. Freeze-that action is also seen here.
- When the glacier is large enough, it begins to flow over the edge of the cirque. After this, it begins its way down the valley.
- When the glacier melts, a lake called a tarn can be trapped in the cirque hollow.
- When two cirques form back to back, the ridge between them is known as an arete.
- Example: the Devil's Punchbowl, County Kerry.