Why can life exist under frozen surfaces in lakes and ponds?

Water is less dense as a solid than as a liquid. This means that ice is less dense than liquid water, which is why it floats. This property is important, as it keeps ponds, lakes, and oceans from freezing solid and allows life to continue to thrive under the icy surface.



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Only the top layer of the lake or river freezes. Underneath the frozen upper layer, the water remains in its liquid form and does not freeze. Also, oxygen is trapped beneath the layer of ice. As a result, fish and other aquatic animals find it possible to live comfortably in the frozen lakes and ponds.

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When lakes and ponds freeze, the ice on the surface forms pockets of air and helps insulate the water so it doesn't freeze solid. Michigan lakes and ponds are home to a variety of plants and animals. Ice helps protect most aquatic plants and animals throughout the winter months.

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The bottom of a lake do not freeze in severe winter. The reason is that ice is a poor conductor of heat hence once the surface is frozen no further heat is liberated or absorbed by water beneath ice. Therefore water below ice never freezes.

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If water were most dense as a solid, lakes would freeze from the bottom up, eventually freezing solid. In that case, little or nothing would survive in the lake. Most lakes and ponds don't completely freeze because the ice (and eventually snow) on the surface acts to insulate the water below.

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Surface Temperatures. —During the winter, from the latter part of December to the breaking up of the ice in the spring, the temperature of the water under the ice is 32 F. The water then warms at a uniform rate to 72 F.

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Dissolved oxygen is supplied to a lake from two main sources: plant and algae photosynthesis and diffusion from the atmosphere.

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The reason water freezes from the top down is because, unlike almost everything else, water gets less dense when it freezes. This is why ice cubes float in a drink.

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Water freezes from the perimeter of the lake to the center. It happens this way because the water is shallower at the lake's edge so it cools off faster. Water is most dense at 39 degrees Fahrenheit, so when it gets colder than that, the cold, lighter water floats on top of the lake.

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Lake ice freezes first at the surface starting at the edges or shoreline for two reasons. Water near the shore is typically shallower and contains less heat than deeper water so it can reach the freezing point faster than deeper water.

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