Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Even the icicles were dirty ...

This photo was taken on Nov. 15, 2010 -- roughly 2 weeks after the katabatic windstorm on Halloween. Large piles of sediment, blown onto the sea ice, are seen everywhere.


The sun was warming the labyrinth, forming icicles on the undersides of its various features.



Closer inspection revealed that these icicles were vested with sediment. They seemed to be serving as "fine sediment flypaper." I wonder if icicles have been viewed in this context before, and I wonder what role, if any, this process plays in sediment deposition?


Dirty ice everywhere ... a sign of the times? Don't worry - like everything else, icicles come and go, come and go.

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