Blood Falls, Antarctica, is one of the natural landmarks. It’s found at the end of Taylor Glacier, near Antarctica’s ice-free Dry Valleys.
The Blood Falls gets its name from the blood-red water that trickles from the glacier. The water is red not from real blood, but because of the presence of iron metal. The iron in Blood Falls water turns red as it oxidizes, or rusts, when it comes in contact with oxygen in the air. This is the general property of iron, if the iron comes in contact with oxygen in the air it will form a rust, if the intensity of oxygen exposure is higher, it leads to the higher rusting process that occurs, allowing the color to be very red.
The iron-rich water of Blood Falls doesn’t actually come from Taylor Glacier. It comes from a salty lake under the glacier. A crack, or fissure, in Taylor Glacier allows the water from this lake to rise up. The lake under the glacier has an unusually salty consistency, because saltwater has a lower freezing point than pure water and releases heat as it freezes, it melts the ice, thus allowing rivers water to flow.
Blood
Falls
, Antarctica, is one of the natural landmarks. It’s found at the
end
of Taylor
Glacier
, near Antarctica’s ice-free Dry Valleys.
The
Blood
Falls
gets
its name from the blood-red
water
that trickles from the
glacier
. The
water
is red
not from real
blood
,
but
because
of the presence of
iron
metal. The
iron
in
Blood
Falls
water
turns red as it oxidizes, or rusts, when it
comes
in contact with oxygen in the air. This is the general property of
iron
, if the
iron
comes
in contact with oxygen in the air it will form a rust, if the intensity of oxygen exposure is higher, it leads to the higher rusting process that occurs, allowing the color to be
very
red.
The iron-rich
water
of
Blood
Falls
doesn’t actually
come
from Taylor
Glacier
. It
comes
from a salty lake under the
glacier
. A crack, or fissure, in Taylor
Glacier
allows
the
water
from this lake to rise up. The lake under the
glacier
has an
unusually
salty consistency,
because
saltwater has a lower freezing point than pure
water
and releases heat as it freezes, it melts the ice,
thus
allowing rivers
water
to flow.