Bent icicles and spikes

Formation mechanisms of bent icicles and thin spikes were studied by observations of natural icicles and by artificially growing icicles in a cold laboratory, and the results are discussed with reference to the general growth process of icicles. It is shown that icicles can be bent by the displaceme...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Published in:Annals of Glaciology
Main Authors: Maeno, Norikazu, Makkonen, Lasse, Takahashi, Tsuneya
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: 1994
Subjects:
Online Access:https://cris.vtt.fi/en/publications/83d67532-e052-4bba-8be9-fe7923560d5f
https://doi.org/10.3189/1994AoG19-1-138-140
Description
Summary:Formation mechanisms of bent icicles and thin spikes were studied by observations of natural icicles and by artificially growing icicles in a cold laboratory, and the results are discussed with reference to the general growth process of icicles. It is shown that icicles can be bent by the displacement of their roots, change in water supply rates, and wind. Spikes were observed to grow by the freezing of a water column captured at the centre of icicles after their length and diameter growth stopped.