It’s very cold tonight, so we played with bubbles If you blow them upwards enough they have time to freeze on the way down.
Skipweasel took photographs of the experiments in blowing soap bubbles in freezing weather. The pictures are wild -especially when you see a frozen bubble bursting! Link
Johnny Cat
Outstanding photography; I like the viewer on that site, too.
SparkS
Unlike the hamster shredder this is TERRIFIC! I never would have thought this was possible and yet it's a very simple idea. Any idea on how cold it needs to get? The site only had pictures. I will have to get a bottle off bubble making liquid, or whatever the official name is. That will serve as a reminder to try it. It doesn't get extremely cold in ChooChooTown but I would love to
see this! Thanks Miss C!
Miss Cellania
Skipweasel is a regular Neatoramanaut. I bet he'll come here and answer your questions eventually!
befu
this is quite awesome. i should try it sometime this winter since negative temps seem to be the norm nowadays!
Marco McClean
The photographer captions an image of a half-frozen bubble to say that they always freeze downward from the top, and to speculate that this might be because of the ground radiating more heat than the sky. I think it's because the thinnest part will freeze first, and the top of the bubble is thinner than the bottom.
Skipweasel
SparkS:- It was about -5°C and very still. We had to blow the bubbles with a toy electric bubble blower - using breath made them too warm to freeze before they hit the ground.
Marco:- I'll try an experiment tonight if it's cold enough - a bit of tinfoil above a bubble should even out the temperature difference and see if it makes any difference.
JohnnyCat:- the viewer is JAlbum, a bit of freeware that I'm always happy to promote. Google will turn it up for you.
Christophe
100% Neat!
Alana
I used to do that all the time, growing up in northern Minnesota. When it's -30 F, the bubbles are worth the mittens crusted with frozen soap.
Jane Martin
This is great. I have a bubble maker gun I use to entertain my dogs. I'll bet that will work well. Thanks, Miss C -
WaffleMatt
If this works in -5, I'm really tempted to try it in -50, or colder. I want to see if I can get bubbles to be strong enough to hold their shape on the ground.
just a guy
Weighing in on "The bubbles always seem to freeze from the top down. I think this is because the sky radiates a lot less heat than even frozen grass"
It's because the solution is mostly water, and water (unlike most substances) is actually less dense as a solid than a liquid. Most substances, when frozen, will sink in their own liquid versions (as they are more dense). But not water!
So, ice will always form at the top of water and move downwards, unless a large outside influence changes this (like a temperature differential above the freezing water, etc..).
renderanything
Something I never would have thought to do. Incredible crystal formations.
Idil
I'm so shocked this is not something commonly known. I've GOT to try this! It's spectacular! Thanks, Miss Cellania!
Skipweasel
renderanything:- My brother and I must be very alike, despite being 15 years apart. When I emailed him the pictures he said he used to do the same when he lived in New England. Of course, he got a lot more opportunity there than here.
Skipweasel
just a guy:- Yes, ice floats, but fluid in the film of a bubble isn't that mobile. I don't think it moves fast enough for the colder denser fluid to swim round to the top in time to make any difference. Watching the swirling patterns they barely move, nothing like as fast as they do in warm weather.
liphttam1
I am checking my weather now.
SparkS
Skipweasel
SparkS:- It was about -5°C and very still. We had to blow the bubbles with a toy electric bubble blower - using breath made them too warm to freeze before they hit the ground.
Thanks for the added info, it gets below that here so there's hope. Never would have figured in the heat of our breath. I actually have a bubble blower, or used to. Seem to remember it took a LOT of batteries. Can't find it but I know I bought 3 of them, don't ask, and kind of gave one to someone for her grandson. He was way too young so I'll try and get it back in the name of science. Sounds better than being an Indian giver. It also came with bubble juice so I may not need to buy any.
Brooks Bell
Can you use one of those very large bubble wands? They make bubbles a foot across in normal weather. But you have to dip them in a tray which of course must still be liquid.
Skipweasel
Brooks Bell:- I thought of that, but couldn't be arsed to mess around that night. Of course, it hasn't been cold enough since. Breezy, too.
just a guy
well, it's certainly not the heat radiating from the ground (too many other random thermal factors closer), and if it was due to the 'thickness' of the bottom vs top, the whole thing would freeze at random points uniformly on the outside layer (the bottom of the inside would take an very very short amount of time longer, but it wouldn't be viewable).
Perhaps it has something to do with the old addage "heat rises" and heat escaping from the top? I'm not certain of that...
Despite the appearences, I believe the colder water molecules rise very quickly forming this 'top down' freezing. Without experiemntation with the right equipment, however, I can't say conclusively.
Skipweasel
I wouldn't dismiss the cold-sky idea so quickly. It's really noticeable that if I park my car with the windscreen facing the open sky it freezes much faster than if I park it facing a building 40' away. The crown of the bubble can barely see anything except open cold sky from which it receives very little heat. The sides and bottom are surrounded by fences, ground, people etc. all of which are much warmer than the sky.
24Slashing
lol...it is pretty neat. But Canucks have been doing this for years. It's always best to have a young child around too.....they are always truly amazed when it bursts.
TheWriter
**Press Request**
Hi Skipweasel
I can't find a contact email for you anywhere so will post here... We'd love to do a story on your bubbles & try & get it published in newspapers & Magazines.
Please contact me on dmurray@rexfeatures.com or bbbloke@hotmail.com
Regards
Dean
peter barvoets
neat photo. I just posted a short video clip on youtube and flickr showing a bubble as it freezes. very cool as the ice proceeds to cover the surface of the bubble. See: youtube or flickr. Enjoy.
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