News of crop circles come and go, but when is the last time you saw a rotating ice circle? A disk of ice approximately 100 yards in diameter has been spotted in the Presumpscot River in Westbrook, Maine:
This week in the city of Westbrook, Maine, a huge, rotating circle of ice formed on the Presumpscot River. While it seems like it could be an omen of the impending apocalypse or a particularly low-effort attempt at a crop circle by extraterrestrials, in reality it appears to be another example of a natural yet rare phenomenon resulting from some simple physics.
Photos taken by and the city of Westbrook's marketing & communications manager, Tina Radel, show the gigantic disk of ice appearing to have a surface area larger than a nearby, multi-story parking garage. True to municipal form, the city also published a video of the ice disk with a dramatic soundtrack:
Pictures and videos in the story require Javascript; videos are posted to YouTube and Vimeo.
Additional coverage at the Portland Press Herald.
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday January 16 2019, @04:04PM (2 children)
Not that there's anything wrong with web development, but was he the "nerdiest" guy in town or something?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday January 16 2019, @05:06PM
He was the only one who cared to make an estimate.
(Score: 2, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday January 16 2019, @11:00PM
Reminds me of a conversation I had with the editor of a local newspaper. They were talking about how people were doing what would now be called "random acts of kindness" and "paying it forward." One line from the story read something like, "And even our local Nobel Prize winner got in on the fun by [blah blah]." I saw him at an event and asked him why they specified that he won the Nobel Prize. He said, "Why not remind people that at least someone partially important to the world was from here." He then went on to explain that people like some sort of flavor text for people who are mentioned and a person's job is usually the easiest way. Since that particular resident won the prize, it was just easier to mention that than use something along the lines of "local resident" or "retiree."
(Score: 3, Informative) by canopic jug on Wednesday January 16 2019, @06:26PM
You can do these with a good chainsaw and a rope. If you really want to set it spinning then an outboard motor won't hurt either. These ice carousels were all the rage two years ago [sitra.fi].
Money is not free speech. Elections should not be auctions.
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday January 16 2019, @09:51PM (2 children)
"Physics causes some strange phenomena, like slowly-rotating discs of ice on a frozen river that resemble UFO saucers. But have no fear, science is here to explain away your excitement. "
If every time I get excited about something science is just going to ruin it for me then who needs science. The only thing science is good for is ruining my excitement.
(Score: 3, Informative) by AthanasiusKircher on Thursday January 17 2019, @02:18AM (1 child)
Yeah, thing is -- these are somewhat common in cold places, but usually they're anywhere from a few feet (or smaller) to several yards in diameter.
This one is roughly a hundred yards in diameter. Though the principles for formation may be roughly the same, I'd imagine such a huge one couldn't form just anywhere... Or even in a place where geographically it would work, you'd need fairly specific conditions.
So I'd say there's still plenty to be excited about here... And science of more common smaller ones may be helpful in understanding this one.
Why should understanding and knowledge temper excitement? I don't understand... To me, understanding often leads to greater excitement about a phenomenon...
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday January 17 2019, @01:06PM
"Why should understanding and knowledge temper excitement? I don't understand... To me, understanding often leads to greater excitement about a phenomenon..."
Because I was hoping it would be aliens and this ruins that for me.