GLACIERS AND GEOLOGY
Hardangerjokulen is the sixth largest glacier on mainland Norway. In 1983 it covered 73 km2. The highest point on the glacier is approximately 1,850 metres above sea level.
On the Hardangervidda plateau you can trace geological history right back 2,000 million years to prehistoric times. 600 millon years ago Hardangervidda was a rolling plain just
above sea level until a geological upthrust 400 million years ago covered it wlth a layer 3,000 metres thlck. The mountain chain thus created suffered erosion even up to recent times and was gradually worn away, leaving only the mountains Hallingskarvet and Harteigen.
In the Quaternary Period (the last 2-3 millon years) Norway has been covered with ice several times and it is this ice which has given Hardangervidda the geological formation we see today.
Source: Information board on site