- Title
- Frozen elegance: An Ice Blossom
- Technique
- Polarized optical microscope
- Description
- The freezing process of a thin water layer was captured under crossed-polarized light via the birefringent nature of ice. Ice initially nucleated at the center and rapidly "bloomed" outward. The vibrant colors represent various orientations of small ice grains. We recently discovered that bending a piece of ice can generate electricity.