In a small Finnish town, a unique natural wonder takes place when conditions are just right.
Along the coast of Hailuoto Island, near the icy northern Baltic Sea, what appears to be thousands of eggs nestle in the snow-covered sands. However, these are not eggs but rather incredible ice sculptures crafted by nature.
Thousands of egg-shaped balls of ice have covered a beach in Finland, the result of a rare weather phenomenon. It occurred along the Marjaniemi beach on Hailuoto island. Photos by Risto Mattila pic.twitter.com/W01AovKZjB
— severe-weather.EU (@severeweatherEU) November 8, 2019
In 2019, Risto Mattila, an amateur photographer, discovered this phenomenon while walking with his wife on Hailuoto Island. He described the day as sunny, around 30°F, and quite windy – ideal for creating what they found. On Marjaniemi beach, they saw thousands of egg-shaped ice balls, varying from the size of small eggs to footballs, spread over an area of about 100 feet.
BBC Weather expert George Goodfellow explains that such formations require cold, windy conditions. They start as pieces of larger ice sheets, rounded by wave action. As sea water freezes onto their surfaces, they grow and become smoother, eventually washing up on beaches.
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Dr. James Carter, an emeritus professor of geography-geology at Illinois State University, adds that these balls form from ice on the water’s surface, turning into a slushy mix shaped by the waves’ back-and-forth motion.
These fascinating ice orbs aren’t just found in Finland. In northern Russia, giant ice and snow balls covered about 11 miles of coastline along the Gulf of Ob. In China’s Jilin province, ice balls were seen beneath a frozen lake surface. And in Michigan, similar phenomena occur on Lake Michigan’s shores, showcasing nature’s extraordinary sculpting abilities.
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These natural ice sculptures are a reminder of the stunning wonders Mother Nature can create. They invite us to share our experiences of natural beauty and continue exploring the amazing weather phenomena from around the world.
