Back to Top

“Unveiling the Secrets Beneath: What Lies Hidden Under the Ice Could Change Everything!”

Added on October 22, 2024 inFree Facts and Fun
$0.00

Ever thought about what secrets lie hidden beneath layers of ice? It’s like a freezer for the past, preserving everything from ancient artifacts to frozen creatures that remind us of a world long gone. Ice is nature’s very own time capsule, and when it gets cold enough, the bizarre comes to life! Join me on an icy journey to uncover some of the quirkiest finds that have been preserved over millennia in the frozen wilds. From alligators surviving winter in marshes to the astonishing remains of Ice Age puppies, we’re about to dig into some cool facts that will make you ponder: what else could be lurking under all that frost? Let’s dive in—but remember, when temperatures drop, things may just get freaky! LEARN MORE

Ice has the unique ability to preserve history. There’s a reason we use the phrase “frozen in time.” When temperatures drop below zero, some pretty bizarre things can start happening.

Scientists have found all kinds of things preserved in ice, from tools to animals to evidence of early humans. Take a trip up north with us to learn about all of the ways ice has acted as a time capsule. Some of these photos make you wonder what else is left to be discovered under the ice.

Staying Alive

alligator-ht-2-er-180109_4x3_9

Just because an animal is frozen in ice, that doesn’t mean that it’s dead. Some kinds of alligators can survive the whole winter in a frozen marsh.

You would think alligators wouldn’t be able to survive in the cold because reptiles are cold-blooded, but these reptiles can put their bodies into a state of temporary hibernation. Their bodies require less energy during hibernation, so they can survive the cold weather.

ADVERTISEMENT

A Frozen Fox

ADVERTISEMENT

ap-frozen-fox-mem-170112_12x5_

ADVERTISEMENT

While sometimes scientists get lucky and find a specimen that’s thousands of years old, more often, when they find animals frozen in ice, they find more recent casualties of the cold.

ADVERTISEMENT

This frozen fox was found by a hunter in a lake in Germany. This is what happens when wildlife lives around large bodies of water in the winter time. The hunter said that he also found a frozen deer in the same German lake.

ADVERTISEMENT

A Frozen Lighthouse

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

a-frozen-lighthouse-near-lake-

ADVERTISEMENT

It really does look like an ice queen used her magic on this lighthouse in Michigan. Located at the end of the St. Joseph River in Benton Harbor, the lighthouse often freezes during the cold Michigan winters. It’s truly amazing to see the staircase frozen in ice like this.

ADVERTISEMENT

A lighthouse is supposed to warn incoming ships about the closeness of the coast, but what is going to warn the lighthouse about the severity of the winter? These icicles are huge!

ADVERTISEMENT

Fishy Business

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

pike-eating-bass-frozen-in-ice-e1552584406190

ADVERTISEMENT

Somehow, this larger fish froze while it was in the middle of eating a smaller fish. Most of the time, fish are able to survive in cold water under the top layer of ice. The upper layer is frozen, but the water underneath is still liquid and livable for most fish. This lake got a little too cold for comfort, however.

ADVERTISEMENT

These fish must have frozen in an instant. An ice fisherman was able to pull this specimen out of the water with the fish intact. What a catch!

ADVERTISEMENT

The Last Dive

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

af-composite-frozen-birds-e1552584100102

ADVERTISEMENT

These birds dive into the water to find tasty fish to eat. Unfortunately, it was a little bit too cold that one fateful day and this bird froze to death on the way to his dinner. These frozen specimens were found in Weisendorf, northern Bavaria.

ADVERTISEMENT

Let this serve as a warning to all Bavarian birds. It’s not a good idea to go for a swim or hunt prey in the water during the winter time. Cold water can be deadly.

ADVERTISEMENT

Ice Age Puppies

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

Part_DV_DV2228067_1_1_0-e1552583575680

ADVERTISEMENT

This specimen sort of resembles a young dog and scientist think that it’s a puppy from the Ice Age. This creature is probably around 12,460 years old.

ADVERTISEMENT

This ancient dog was found in the Siberian tundra, and it’s given us new information about the way dogs evolved. This dog was discovered while scientists were looking for mammoth tusks. They went looking for ivory but they ended up striking gold. Man’s best friend has come a long way.

ADVERTISEMENT

A Mammoth Discovery

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

yet-as-they-arrived-the-only-e

ADVERTISEMENT

Fossils can preserve impressions that animals leave behind, but ice can preserve the actual animal. Recently, scientists found a woolly mammoth head with an intact brain off of the Latev Sea Coast.

ADVERTISEMENT

This mammoth is around 39,000 years old, and it’s the only mammoth that’s ever been found with a brain intact. It was also quite young when it died. This animal only lived to be between six and nine years old.

ADVERTISEMENT

Copper Weaponry

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

copper-arrowhead

ADVERTISEMENT

Scientists have found a whole bunch of copper arrowheads preserved in ice. This means that ancient man had an understanding of how to shape metal. The finding also indicates that they must have had the means to find, melt, and shape copper into usable tools.

ADVERTISEMENT

These arrowheads were barbed and they kind of look like fishing hooks. This makes them perfect hunting tools. It’s extremely rare to come across a copper arrowhead like this one. Many of them date back 1,000 years.

ADVERTISEMENT

Evidence Of Vikings

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

Ancient-ski-e1552584589292

ADVERTISEMENT

A lot of what we know about the Vikings came from artifacts that were discovered in frozen blocks of ice. Scientists have found Viking tools and sailing equipment inside of several glaciers in Juvfonna, Norway.

ADVERTISEMENT

Most of these tools were made out of reindeer hide. They found sticks, bows and arrows, and leather shoe soles. They also found quite a few elaborate reindeer traps. All of these artifacts are estimated to be around 3,400 years old.

ADVERTISEMENT

A Petrified Dinosaur

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

13dinosaur-superJumbo-e1552582116107

ADVERTISEMENT

This ancient animal is a nodosaur. It walked the earth nearly 110 million years ago. When the dinosaurs died off, some left their skeletons behind, but this one left even more. One scientist told the New York Times that this particular specimen isn’t “just have a skeleton, We have a dinosaur as it would have been.”

ADVERTISEMENT

Experts believe that the body of this creature found in ice might have been swept out to sea by a flooded river, helping to preserve it so well.

ADVERTISEMENT

How It All Works

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

Cold-Weather

ADVERTISEMENT

So, you’re probably wondering exactly how ice is able to preserve specimens so well. It’s because bacteria can’t survive in frigid cold temperatures. Bacteria works on the tissue to decompose it. Without bacteria, you don’t get any decomposition.

ADVERTISEMENT

Because there’s no decomposition, these artifacts, both living and non-living, remain pristine. It’s kind of like how food can last a lot longer in a freezer than it can in a pantry or even a refrigerator.

ADVERTISEMENT

The Real Cold War

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

roads_avalanche-1

ADVERTISEMENT

During World War II, battles were fought in the Alps. Soldiers who fought in this region often suffered from frostbite and other cold-related ailments. The cold was one of the biggest enemies during the war, even though these soldiers were fighting national armies.

ADVERTISEMENT

Many of the soldiers who died during the second world war didn’t actually die from gunshot wounds or blows to the head. They froze to death in the cold weather.

ADVERTISEMENT

The Ice People

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

60956609-1000x604

ADVERTISEMENT

Scientists have found evidence of ancient civilizations like the Incas preserved in ice, but they have also found people in ice who are much closer to our own time period.

ADVERTISEMENT

Recently, scientists found the body of a first nations ancestor that was estimated to be about 300 years old. They called the body “Long Ago Man.” He was found wearing a robe made out of ninety-five pelts. he also had a walking stick and fish scales in his pockets.

ADVERTISEMENT

The Woolly Mammoth

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

GettyImages-965760486

ADVERTISEMENT

Ice has given us so much insight into prehistoric creatures, including the famed woolly mammoth. This animal lived in cold climates like Alaska and Siberia. We’ve already spoken about the best preserved, oldest mammoth ever found that was determined to be around 39,000 years old.

ADVERTISEMENT

This mammoth had all of its blood and muscle tissue intact, which means that one day when the technology becomes available, we could actually clone this mammoth.

ADVERTISEMENT

An Ancient Frozen Spear

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

equipaggiamento_frecce_paralla

ADVERTISEMENT

We’ve seen copper arrowheads on this list already, but there are other kinds of tools and weapons that have been found preserved in ice. In Yellowstone, scientists found a 10,300-year-old spear.

ADVERTISEMENT

Scientists determined that the spear was used to hunt and kill animals for the purpose of food. In Yellowstone, early man was most likely hunting and feasting on elk. They were also probably using the elk fur to make warm clothing.

ADVERTISEMENT

The Woolly Rhino

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

woolly_rhino_charges_nigel-122

ADVERTISEMENT

You’ve heard of the woolly mammoth, but have you heard of the woolly rhino? These animals used to roam frozen wastelands nearly 10,000 years ago. A frozen woolly rhino was found in Sakha, Russia.

ADVERTISEMENT

The particular rhino that was found appeared to be around 18 months old when it died. Its fur was fully preserved by the ice. Although it’s sad that this baby rhino died prematurely, it’s nice that her body was able to tell us more about where she came from.

ADVERTISEMENT

U.S. Air Force Plane Crashes in Canada

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

6437c3b2493467195ac824b0251aba55

ADVERTISEMENT

On February 7, 1950, a United States Air Force aircraft crashed in Canada after being caught in harsh winter weather conditions. The Doulgas C-47 Skytrain landed in Whitehorse, Yukon on rock and snow.

ADVERTISEMENT

Luckily, all 10 people on board survived the crashed. The aircraft, however, was damaged beyond repair, and was left behind in the cold terrain. It’s still there, and will likely remain there for a long time, preserved in the cold climate.

ADVERTISEMENT

Atlatl Darts

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

BisonKill

ADVERTISEMENT

Scientists have found atlatls in ice. Atlatls were one of the first weapons made by early man. They resembled a four-to-six-foot-long spear on a handle with a notch at the end. These Atlatls would often be customized by the person they belonged to.

ADVERTISEMENT

These were throwing spears, and the customized handles would allow the spears to travel further and faster. We can learn a lot about the hunting practices of past civilizations by the tools they left behind.

ADVERTISEMENT

Caribou Poop

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

Reindeers in snow in area of Croda Rossa

ADVERTISEMENT

Animal droppings are commonly found in ice patches. I know you might not think that caribou poop is very exciting, but to a scientist, excrement holds all the answers. You can learn so much about an animal by studying its poop.

ADVERTISEMENT

This waste matter tells us where the animal ate, what it ate, and where it got the food. We can track caribou movement and migration from their bowel movements, which is also preserved in ice.

ADVERTISEMENT

The Problem With Global Warming

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

antarcitca

ADVERTISEMENT

When the glaciers melt, everything stored within them becomes exposed, which is partially good news because it means scientists can recover lost artifacts. It’s also bad news because it means those artifacts are no longer being preserved by ice. Now that they’re exposed to the elements, bacteria and weather can come in and start degrading the specimens piece by piece.

ADVERTISEMENT

Bone will only last ten years outside of freezing conditions, so scientists need to make the best use of the time.

ADVERTISEMENT

Ice Patches

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

GettyImages-603118350

ADVERTISEMENT

Ice patches in the Arctic are deteriorating at an alarming rate. Ice patches form when layers of snow pile up year after year. Many Arctic animals call these ice patches home. These solid pieces of ice give them a chance to rest and escape predators when they’re out hunting in the open ocean.

ADVERTISEMENT

Scientists are looking for ways to preserve or rebuild ice patches so we don’t lose some of our beloved Arctic animal species.

ADVERTISEMENT

Building Shelter

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

SetWidth1200-51141964

ADVERTISEMENT

Because ice patches are made out of layers of snow that have built up over the years, you can find all sorts of things buried inside them. Recently scientists found a rare kind of wood in an ice patch in the Arctic. There were no trees around this ice patch, so ancient man must have harvested the wood from another location and carried it all the way to this specific ice patch.

ADVERTISEMENT

Scientists think early man was using this wood to build shelters that they could stay in while they were on hunting trips.

ADVERTISEMENT

The Best Birch Basket

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

image_10721

ADVERTISEMENT

Scientists also found a well-preserved birch basket in one of these patches. Birch baskets aren’t exactly mysterious, but they do give us a lot of insight into the civilization that may have created them. This basket was discovered in 2003 and it’s thought to be around 650 years old.

ADVERTISEMENT

The basket had a unique weaved pattern and based on its dimensions, scientists figured that the basket was probably used to carry berries.

ADVERTISEMENT

Glacial And Ice Patch Archeology

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

GettyImages-1136770434

ADVERTISEMENT

A new field of science has emerged in the wake of global warming. Before the glaciers started melting and receding, glacial and ice patch archeology didn’t really exist.

ADVERTISEMENT

Ice patch and glacier archeologists dig through half melted ice to find the artifacts that early civilizations left behind. They study how these artifacts were preserved and what they might tell us about the people who left them behind. It’s possibly the only silver lining of global warming.

ADVERTISEMENT

Gopher Stick

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

Montana, Glacier National Park, (Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park,) Ground Squirrel Near Logan Pass.

ADVERTISEMENT

A gopher stick isn’t a stick made out of gophers. It’s a contraption that was used to capture gophers. These things were basically gopher traps that were placed over a gopher’s burrow. When the gopher came out of the hole, it would trigger the trap which was made out of a carved stick and some strong string.

ADVERTISEMENT

Scientists found a gopher trap in an ice patch that’s estimated to be around 1,800 years old. That’s a pretty incredible find!

ADVERTISEMENT

Findings Vary By Location

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

Geisbuhel alp above Lech ski resort, Arlberg

ADVERTISEMENT

No two ice patches are the same. As glaciers recede, they reveal animals and artifacts that are unique to their individual regions. Different mountain ranges require different hunting equipment.

ADVERTISEMENT

The tools scientists have found in North American mountain ranges are different from the tools they’ve found in Norway or Austria. In the Alps, you’ll find travel gear, while in South America you’ll find objects associated with rituals. Each region tells its own story.

ADVERTISEMENT

Willow Bow

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

347c1b7e2172ca0faeb0f315dbb369

ADVERTISEMENT

The willow bow is another ancient weapon that’s been found in melting ice patches. These tools are carved from willow tree branches, which are especially pliable. These bows were used to hunt elk and reindeer. One particular bow scientists found is estimated to be around 340 years old.

ADVERTISEMENT

These tools reveal just how inventive men were all those years ago. We definitely got our smarts from these primitive hunters who were able to design and assemble hunting tools with extremely limited resources.

ADVERTISEMENT

A Frozen Ancient Creature

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

o-ELK-FROZEN-facebook-e1554148080661

ADVERTISEMENT

In this photo, you can see a prehistoric version of a moose preserved in ice. This isn’t a modern moose, but it kind of looks like one. You can make out its fur and its antlers, which are both characteristics for the moose and elk we know today.

ADVERTISEMENT

This creature was almost certainly a precursor to many of the large, antlered animals that are around today. Back in the day, these creatures supplied man with both meat and fur.

ADVERTISEMENT

A Caribou That Lost Its Life

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

simen-johan-1-e1554149957934

ADVERTISEMENT

The content and composition of this photo make it pretty surreal to look at. It’s the carcass of a caribou that was frozen on a lake and appears that the ice might have started to thaw, creating bizarre shapes around the poor creature’s antlers that almost resemble a squid.

ADVERTISEMENT

Caribou, which are called reindeer in other regions of the world, dwell in the Arctic as well as Siberia, northern Europe, and North America.

ADVERTISEMENT

A Frozen Frog

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

frosk-liggende3_900_600_90_s_c1-e1554151023869

ADVERTISEMENT

This little frog was on its way across a small river or stream when an extreme cold front set in and froze both the river and the frog.

ADVERTISEMENT

Cold temperatures and moisture just aren’t a good mix. Flash freezing is fairly common in areas at high altitudes. If you’re heading up north, make sure you bring a good jacket and some hand warmers. You don’t want to end up like this guy.

ADVERTISEMENT

Human Sacrifice

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

Glacial Tourism In Patagonia

ADVERTISEMENT

Scientists have found evidence of human sacrifices in Chile. An ancient civilization called the Incas used to sacrifice children to the Andes so that the gods would bring them rain for their crops and good fortune.

ADVERTISEMENT

Frozen at the top of the mountain was the body of a young girl who was sadly killed in the name of the gods. The body was found in 1954 and scientists named the girl “Juanita.”

ADVERTISEMENT

More Human Sacrifice

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

maxresdefault (2)

ADVERTISEMENT

Juanita wasn’t the only victim of human sacrifice found in the Andes. The severe cold temperatures in the region perfectly preserved a young boy who was killed likely in the name of the sun god, Inti.

ADVERTISEMENT

The boy was so well kept that scientists were able to figure out his blood type, his age, and his position in society. This boy was clearly upper class. All of this information comes courtesy of the glaciers.

ADVERTISEMENT

“Bloody” Ice

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

Blood-Falls

ADVERTISEMENT

This scene might look like something out of The Shining, but that’s not actually blood you’re looking at. In Antarctica, Blood Falls glacier is overflowing with iron-rich water. It’s the iron that gives this water its red hue.

ADVERTISEMENT

Nobody knows where all of this iron is coming from, but for some reason, there’s a lot of it in Antarctica. It could be a result of ocean water mixing with the water from melting glaciers.

ADVERTISEMENT

A Mysterious Plane Crash

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

anchorage-alaska-plane-wreck

ADVERTISEMENT

In 1952, a military plane that was headed to Anchorage, Alaska hit a glacier. Unfortunately, 41 passengers and 11 crew members died in the crash.

ADVERTISEMENT

The rescue workers were able to recover most of the plane, but not all of it. The glacier would have to melt before they could complete their mission. The thing is, glaciers don’t exactly melt very quickly. It took 50 years for all of the parts of the plane to be found.

ADVERTISEMENT

Glacier Archeology Reveals Mysteries

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

Penitentes-Aconcagua

ADVERTISEMENT

The ice patches are still melting and the glaciers are still receding. As they continue to disappear, we will find more evidence of the people and animals who inhabited this planet before us. We’re not sure what we’re going to find next, but we know there are many more treasures perfectly preserved in these huge blocks of ice.

ADVERTISEMENT

If you’re interested in the field of glacier archeology, you can read more about it online, or even take a trip to the Alps to see archeologists in action for yourself.

RSS
Follow by Email