As glaciers flow down a mountain, its pace quickens when the slope steepens. When ice flows faster on steeper pitches of ice below slower moving ice above, a crescentic crevasse may form.
Glaciers move slower down the sides than in the centre because of the friction between the ice and walls of the mountain. This speed difference often creates lateral crevasses near the sides of the glacier, pointing up-valley.
Mountaineering: The Freedom of the Hills, 5th edition. ISBN 0-89886-309-0Reference