• Matt_s Swirls

Featured VISUAL Image

See this link for other MRSEC VISUAL images.

Microscopic Glaciers

When a drop of salt water dries, as the water evaporates, the drop gets smaller and smaller. However, the concentration of the salt is always increasing, since the water is leaving. At some point, salt crystals begin to appear and the arrangement of the crystals on the surface is influenced by the drying. This reflection optical microscope image shows how the crystals appear to be oriented by the drying and, in fact, these crystals look like a glacier as it advances into the sea and breaks off large pieces of ice that float away.

Image produced by the: Murugappan Muthukumar Research Group
Image submitted by: Deniz Kaya