Striped Icebergs
Icebergs in the Antarctic area sometimes have stripes, formed by layers of snow that react to different conditions.
Blue stripes are often created when a crevice in the ice sheet fills up with meltwater and freezes so quickly that no bubbles form.
When an iceberg falls into the sea, a layer of salty seawater can freeze to the underside. If this is rich in algae, it can form a green stripe.
Other coloured stripes, such as black, brown and yellow, are created by sediment collected by the ice as it moves down a hillside towards the sea. The icebergs can take hundreds or even thousands of years to form.
The iceberg photographs were taken by Norwegian sailor Oyvind Tangen from aboard a research vessel and were snapped in an area several hundred miles north of the Antarctic.
The “ice wave” formation is created by glaciation, melting and refreezing, and other natural forces, over very long periods of time.
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