Why is red liquid ‘bleeding’ from this Antarctic glacier?

It's not what you think it is

SOURCE

IT LOOKS like a gruesome scene, interrupting the pristine whiteness of ice-covered East Antarctica. What appears to be blood can be seen spilling over the snow in the extreme desert, begging the question — what on earth happened? Thankfully, this is no crime scene, nor is it the site of a terrible accident.

It’s actually a strange natural wonder that could hold the secret to life on Mars and it has an appropriately gory name: Blood Falls.

a reply to: Mianeye
wow that does look gruesome. kinda neat too. thanks for sharing.

it's the sign of an Apocalypse when you see ancient red algae bloom in the middle of an icy desert. Or at the very least, Massive changes to our environment!

That time of the month for Mother Nature I guess.

It's just that time of the month.

a reply to: Blazemore2000

LOL !
Double post

a reply to: Mianeye

The article you linked states Iron in reaction to the oxygenated air, iron oxide / Rust.
I would have guessed Algae or trapped Red Tide if you will.

Thanks for posting. S&F👍

a reply to: Mianeye

1st thought was Iron

You people are so guilable. This is blatant doom porn.

This image is from 2006.

en.wikipedia.org...


Everybody needs to stop watching western news from now on. Focus on local news not world. Utter BS.

www.google.ca...

Here is a search link of the image.

originally posted by: Tjoran
it's the sign of an Apocalypse when you see ancient red algae bloom in the middle of an icy desert. Or at the very least, Massive changes to our environment!

Maybe you should read the article again.

The bizarre colour of this saltwater is traced back about five million years, when the ocean flooded East Antarctica and created a salty inland lake. Over time, pristine saltwater from the ocean became trapped in a basin that was totally isolated from light, heat and oxygen. The saltwater became more and more concentrated in this basin, and is now said to be about three times saltier than the ocean, and too salty to freeze.

When this saline water trickles through small fissures in the ice, it reacts with oxygen in the air to create a brilliant, bloodlike hue

The phenomenon was first discovered in 1911 by Australian geologist Griffith Taylor, who first explored the valley that is now his namesake. At first, scientists thought the red colour was due to red algae.

But Blood Falls is not just an eye-popping natural wonder. Scientists believe it could also be the gateway to some crucial revelations about life in hostile environments.

Last year, a study on the bacteria in the saltwater suggested Antarctica could be awash with subterranean microbial life. Microbiologists found that the basin of saltwater covered a much bigger area than they initially thought.

Apocalypse eh?

Scientists said the findings could provide new insights into how organisms adapt in extreme environments. And because the McMurdo Dry Valleys are similar to the surface of Mars or Jupiter’s moon Europa, it could also help researchers understand how life could exist on other planets.

originally posted by: Danowski

originally posted by: Tjoran
it's the sign of an Apocalypse when you see ancient red algae bloom in the middle of an icy desert. Or at the very least, Massive changes to our environment!

Maybe you should read the article again.

My bad, I was recalling information from when this was first discovered a long while ago. In any case, My comment doesn't change. The fact that the air is touching this area that most likely hasn't been touched in thousands of years is a bad sign.

originally posted by: Tjoran

originally posted by: Danowski

originally posted by: Tjoran
it's the sign of an Apocalypse when you see ancient red algae bloom in the middle of an icy desert. Or at the very least, Massive changes to our environment!

Maybe you should read the article again.

My bad, I was recalling information from when this was first discovered a long while ago. In any case, My comment doesn't change. The fact that the air is touching this area that most likely hasn't been touched in thousands of years is a bad sign.

Well isn't that a natural phenomenon, ice melting? I don't know of any 4 billion year old ice caps to be honest.

OP: Very cool picture and story.

www.smithsonianmag.com...

Millions of years later, glaciers formed on top of the lake, cutting it off from the rest of the continent—meaning that the water in Blood Falls is something of an aqueous time capsule, preserved 400 meters underground. As the glaciers on top of the lake began to freeze, the water below became even saltier. Today, the salt content of the subglacial lake under Blood Falls is three times saltier than seawater and too salty to freeze. The subglacial lake that feeds Blood Falls is trapped beneath a quarter mile of ice.

But in addition to being cut off from the rest of the continent, the water that feeds Blood Falls is completely cut off from the atmosphere—it has never seen sunlight and is completely devoid of oxygen. It's also extremely rich in iron, which was churned into the water by glaciers scraping the bedrock below the lake. When water from the subglacial lake seeps through a fissure in the glacier, the salty water cascades down the Taylor Glacier into Lake Bonney below. When the iron-rich water comes into contact with the air, it rusts—depositing blood red stains on the ice as it falls.


The funny part, see levels were really low, then the see rose and put not on the shore but an area under water. Then climate change happened so much, that a glacier formed on top of the lake(that was caused by raising see levels)
I don't believe that, how can see level change that much and temperature change sooo much that a glacier could form over water without human intervention....

a reply to: Tjoran

The fact that the air is touching this area that most likely hasn't been touched in thousands of years is a bad sign.

Air has been hitting this area since forever not sure what you mean?

a reply to: Mianeye

Oh.........no.!!!!

In 1945 Nazi submarines found underwater tunnels into huge caverns under the glaciers.

Looks like one of them sprung a coolant leak!

Reminds me of SCP-354

Evidently it is still spewing red water. I wonder how long it will keep going on like that. It sure has made for a long period.