This phenomenon creates extremely cold water currents, causing any organism that comes into contact with it to freeze in an instant.
There are still many mysterious phenomena in the world that, unless you are someone “in the know” or have a particular interest in science, you would never be aware of. One such phenomenon is described below.
This phenomenon is called brinicle, also known as “finger of death”.
This phenomenon is called brinicle, or “finger of death”, due to its deadly beauty. Brinicle was first discovered in the 1960s, but it wasn’t until 2011 that humans were able to record the formation of this phenomenon.
How is brinicle formed?
When ice forms in the polar regions, impurities like salt are expelled, making the ice purer. This is also why ice made from seawater is not as salty as the water from which it was formed.
It wasn’t until 2011 that humans were able to record the formation of this phenomenon. (Photo: Lauren G. Fields).
As the salt is expelled from the ice, the surrounding water becomes saltier, lowering the freezing temperature and increasing the water’s density. This prevents the surrounding water from freezing immediately, despite the extremely low temperatures. Simultaneously, the increased density causes the saltwater to sink to the bottom.
When this salty water sinks to warmer seawater below, the surrounding water will freeze, creating the “columns of ice of death” known as brinicle.
But why is the ice column maintained when it encounters warmer water? This is because when the ice layer surrounding the brinicle reaches a certain thickness, it can maintain extremely low temperatures.
When the ice layer surrounding the brinicle reaches a certain thickness, it can maintain extremely low temperatures.
In this case, the outer ice layer acts as a barrier that prevents the cold, salty water from interacting with the warmer seawater outside, allowing the ice column to continuously extend deeper into the ocean floor.
A deadly phenomenon for small organisms
When this ice column reaches the ocean floor, the bone-chilling cold of the brinicle sweeps across all organisms in an area of the seabed that can span several square kilometers, freezing and destroying everything in its path.
However, the victims of brinicle are usually small, slow-moving organisms on the ocean floor such as sea urchins and starfish. Larger animals like seals are not affected by brinicle; in fact, they can even break these ice columns.
The video documenting this phenomenon was filmed by a BBC crew underwater at -2 degrees Celsius near Little Razorback Island, part of the Ross Archipelago in Antarctica. The entire formation process of the brinicle ice column in the video occurs rapidly, taking only 5-6 hours. When the brinicle reaches the seabed, it immediately destroys all organisms in its path. The affected area can be as extensive as several square kilometers. In the video, slow-moving sea urchins and starfish are frozen instantly upon contact with the cold emanating from the brinicle.
A 2013 study published in the American Chemical Society’s journal likened brinicle to a “reversed chemical garden.” Its growth resembles that of mud volcanoes and hydrothermal vents. According to researchers, the release of salt from sea ice may create conditions suitable for the origin of life.
Brinicle – the origin of life?
Although this phenomenon was discovered over 50 years ago, many mysteries surrounding the existence of brinicle still remain today.
Some scientists believe that life on Earth could have originated from this very phenomenon. If true, it could represent a significant leap forward in the development of life on distant planets beyond Earth, such as Jupiter, Mars, or even the Moon.
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