Mount Washington Observatory’s summit crew used a cold January day to watch soap bubbles freeze. The film makes the changing surface visible, turning a familiar plaything into a small weather observation.
Sheltered locations produced different results
The crew’s account describes trying more than one spot around the Sherman Adams building. That detail matters: even on the same summit, shelter and local temperature can alter how quickly a thin film changes.
Keep the experiment’s date and scale
The recording is from January 24, 2011, not a report of today’s summit conditions. Its useful contribution is the comparison between locations and visible crystal growth. A precise-looking recipe cannot guarantee the same result under another combination of weather, mixture and filming conditions.
Explore more: Angela Kelly’s close-up bubble photographs; another cold-weather bubble video.
Video: Frozen Bubbles 01-24-11 (published by Mount Washington Observatory).
The summit crew compared sheltered spots
The original account describes testing the bubble mixture around the Sherman Adams building rather than simply exposing it to the strongest summit wind. In one location, crystal growth was visible for longer; in another, freezing appeared much faster. That contrast makes the film an observation of local conditions as well as an entertaining cold-weather demonstration.
Trial and error belongs in the explanation
The crew reported experimenting with soap, sugar and water before obtaining the filmed result. Mixture and conditions were therefore both part of the setup. The exact household quantities are not a guarantee of reproducing it elsewhere. The useful lesson is to recognise the variables and the particular January 2011 setting, with the observatory’s own video preserving what the crew saw.
Sources, photography and further reading
Original feature and image attributions:
- Spectacular Photos of Bubbles Frozen in Frigid Temperatures
- Ice On A Building Roof Collapses In The Most Epic Avalanche Possible. Must See!
- Frozen Air Bubbles in Abraham Lake, Alberta Canada
- Collapse Video Of A Glacier The Size Of A City | You’re Going To Find This Hard To Believe!
- Angela Kelly’s close-up bubble photographs
- another cold-weather bubble video
- Frozen Bubbles 01-24-11
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