Comments on: Ice Rings in Lake Michigan

By: Jeff

Jeff — Sat, 26 Jan 2013 14:15:39 +0000

Very interesting, but a lot of your photo links are from 2008. I thought they would be from this week.

By: Mike

Mike — Fri, 25 Jan 2013 03:52:25 +0000

Thanks for the hits to my photo, and more importantly, for not stealing my image like so many “media” people think is appropriate…

Lake Michigan…The Greatest Lake.

By: Jack

Jack — Fri, 25 Jan 2013 03:49:37 +0000

Another Example of GOD’ S, Awesome CREATION !

By: Maria Dryfhout

Maria Dryfhout — Thu, 24 Jan 2013 20:09:12 +0000

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pancake_ice

It is called Pancake Ice.
Very common @ Holland State Park … Holland, MI

By: GunLakeDeb

GunLakeDeb — Thu, 24 Jan 2013 18:38:12 +0000

One of the pictures mentions how noisy they are! I can imagine – last Saturday night, as the wind was tearing apart the ice on Gun Lake – it made a heckuva lot of noise, with chunks of ice clacking and crashing against each other. Then, when it refroze Sunday night – you could actually hear it freeze! It sounds like Rice Krispies – kind of a sizzle-pop! sound. The next morning, on the fresh ice, my nieces and I skipped stones across the surface, to hear it “chirp”. Once it’s thick, it makes expansion cracks that sound like a gunshot followed by thunder.

Until I lived on a lake – I would never have though of ice as being noisy!

By: Robert Swafford

Robert Swafford — Thu, 24 Jan 2013 17:28:24 +0000

Amanda gives the most accurate explanation. I used to live on Little Bay de Noc and these would to be visible as the night temps would drop below the 0 degree Fahrenheit level and then would stop developing as the temp would rise above freezing. When the temperature would go down and stay down then these circles would all freeze and solidify together. But this ice as it is first developing can be very misleading especially if it is covered by snow.
In the late December and January, February when it gets the coldest it was very common to hear the Ice in Lake Michigan making loud thunderous crashing from the pressure cracks colliding together as it piles up underneath the preexisting ice pack.

By: Marti B (Grandville area)

Marti B (Grandville area) — Thu, 24 Jan 2013 16:42:50 +0000

Very interesting!!

By: Jen Thomas

Jen Thomas — Thu, 24 Jan 2013 16:23:53 +0000

Would that be open water for ducks & geese?

By: Yup (Grandville)

Yup (Grandville) — Thu, 24 Jan 2013 14:54:25 +0000

I have a picture some years back from north shore Grand Haven where these were perfect. I’ll dig it up and post to report it when I get home.

By: INDY

INDY — Thu, 24 Jan 2013 14:20:42 +0000

Ice Pancakes….INDYY…