Why is Ice Slippery?

With all the frozen precipitation blanketing many areas of the country, I thought we should share some icy facts with you.

In the 2008 Farmers’ Almanac, we have a great story on “Everything Ice” page 152. In this article, freelancer Lynn Jones shares some great bits of icy tips, including the answer to “Why is Ice Slippery:”

This would seem like an easy question, but, surprisingly, scientists are still debating the answer. The standard textbook explanation is that when ice-skating, for example, the pressure of a skate’s blade on the ice lowers the freezing point of the top layer of ice, causing it to melt; it then refreezes once the pressure is gone.

New research indicates that the pressure theory doesn’t hold water. One new theory says that friction makes ice slippery; another says that the molecules on the surface of ice vibrate at a higher rate and stay liquid at a lower temperature. Which theory will prove right? We’ll have to wait and see.

For more icy tidbits, be sure to check out pages 152-156 of the 2008 Farmers’ Almanac.

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