What is the science behind ice pancakes and ice donuts?

AccuWeather

Some unique ice formations can be seen on cold days across the Great Lakes, but why don't you see them many other places? AccuWeather's Bree Guy explains.

Transcript

00:00Well, are you thinking of an ice pancake for breakfast?

00:05How about an ice donut?

00:07Well, these kinds of treats aren't really the edible kind, but they do make for a spectacular

00:13scene.

00:14Last week, the rare icy phenomenon was spotted along the shores of Lake Michigan.

00:19This time of year is notoriously known for its bitter winter chill across the Great Lakes

00:25And recently, this area hasn't had too much trouble living up to that fact.

00:31Hence why we are seeing ice build up along the lakes.

00:34Now, it's not always a solid sheet of ice that you're looking at.

00:38Let's start with ice pancakes, and for that, you need waves.

00:42Winds need to turn up the water enough to prevent a sheet of ice instead of a solid

00:47piece of ice forming.

00:48You get these little circular pancake ice shapes that bump into each other.

00:52Among many reasons, it would be hard to eat these as they break apart easily when lifted.

00:58Now we'll go to ice donuts.

01:00They do form similar to a pancake ice.

01:03Donut ice does need wave action.

01:06However, what makes them different is that when these ice pieces collide, water is splashed

01:12along the edges.

01:13This water then refreezes and over time builds up to look like an outer ring of a donut.

01:19Though these aren't very stable either.

01:22Now these aren't the only ice oddities that you can form.

01:25You may even spot ice bites or ice balls along the lakes.

01:29If you encounter any of these funky winter spectacles, we would love to see them here

01:35at AccuWeather.

01:36And of course, you can always send them over to any of our social media channels.

01:40That's accuweather.com right there on the dot com on the internet, the AccuWeather app,

01:45and all of our social media channels.

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