Icicles

 

Icicles? Well, it is cold, at the valley bottom, but there is no snow on roofs (at least where I live). Certainly snow on an roof or rock face might melt during the day and produce icicles, but there are other ways. A steep creek can produce splashes which land on nearby vegetation and freeze.

The steeper portion of a small creek has produced gentle splashes that have then clung to a dried twig that crossed the creek. It gradually built up into icicles hanging from the twig. The progression from cloudy to clear as the icicles grew is interesting. This seems to be the result of a slow change in temperature: colder giving quick freezing to warmer allowing the droplets to flow slightly before freezing. This twig extended across the water.

The same evolution took place further upstream, but this time with a twig alongside the splashing creek: cloudy to clear.

 

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One Response to Icicles

  1. Karen Pidcock says:

    Saw,walking along N.K.Lake shore this morning, similar ice phenomenon, wishing I could post here, but will try emailing you. Enjoyed yours, thanks, Alistair, better close-ups…look to me like a frozen upper jaw of human teeth beginning to thaw!

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