In Antarctica, the Ice in Your Drink Pops Like Popcorn
The pale blue chunks come from deep in a glacier and crackle as trapped air escapes.
The Why Files · The Basement: Brad Olsen | Antarctica’s Forbidden ZonesIn Antarctica, the ice in your drink can pop like popcorn.
Traveler and author Brad Olsen said he was offered the crackling cocktail at Arctowski, Poland's research station, after his boat crew brought fresh fruit and vegetables for a crew that can grow little of its own food.
The hosts welcomed the visitors ashore for showers and dinner. Then they served chunks of blue ice and poured whiskey and mixer over it in their glasses.
The ice has a pale blue tint and forms deep inside a glacier. As it melted, tiny air bubbles trapped inside the ice escaped with a popping sound.
Questions people ask
Why is deep glacier ice blue?
Glacier ice looks blue because it is unusually dense. Deep in a glacier, weight squeezes out the tiny surfaces that scatter white light in fresh snow, and the remaining solid ice absorbs red light and reflects blue.
How old is the air trapped in the ice?
It depends on the glacier, but the air is often very old. Snow that fell hundreds or thousands of years ago is slowly buried and compressed, so the bubbles released in a glass can be a sample of ancient atmosphere.