Mirror, Mirror On The Arctic Ocean

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Fact: sea water freezes at 28F because it's salty (for the fun aspect of it see my post Diving Into The Arctic Ocean: Should You?). It is also relatively dense.

Fact: fresh water (like melted ice) freezes over at 32F and is less dense.

Fact: at summer, in the Arctic ocean there is a layer of about 1/2 inch fresh water from all the melted sea-ice and icebergs.

Result: when the temperature drops, this causes a very rapid ice-blanket on the ocean.

Result: when the temperature is above freezing, the difference in the densities of the fresh water and the seawater creates a perfect mirror effect.

Now, to the photos! Click on any photo to enlarge it

In the following photo, I had to get my kayak into the frame so that I myself can see what's real and what's reflection:

But the Arctic also has some beautiful natural views on the ground. Look at this photo - What does it look like? (hint: most people say it looks like an ancient sculpture)

Wrong! It's just another picture-perfect Arctic Ocean mirror effect! Just turn the computer display 90 degrees (alright, I'll do it for you)

And they were all taken from my kayak!

So? Maybe the Arctic is not as scary as it looked? Feeling a little closer to going there? Read my post Alaska, Arctic, And Far North Books To Read to get even closer!