Skating on Thin Ice

Black ice on a canal in the Netherlands, 2007 (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

30 December 2025

After nearly 60°F yesterday morning we now have snow on the ground.

When temperatures suddenly drop below freezing the National Weather Service warns us of black ice on the roadways. This dangerous transparent thin ice cannot be seen until our cars slide on it.

Black ice also forms on still water such as canals in the Netherlands, above, and a small lake in Sweden, below. It is dangerously thin to skate on it but it makes weird noises when this intrepid skater passes over it. Turn your sound up to hear it.

video embedded from National Geographic on YouTube

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