During the last ice age (from 115 000 to 11 700 years ago) Spitsbergen Bank was covered by an ice sheet more than 2 kilometers thick. As the ice melted and retreated, several landforms formed on the seabed.

This snake-shaped ridge is called an esker and is made up of sand and gravel that was deposited in meltwater channels in or under the ice. This esker is 17 kilometers long and up to 8 meters high. Eskers are found both on land and on the seabed in areas that were previously covered by glaciers.

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