Biology / Unit 1 Bio 0152 short lesson, about 20 seconds
Why Ice Floats
Captions available
The idea
Ice is less dense than liquid water because its hydrogen bonds lock into a rigid, spaced-out lattice as water freezes.
In practice
An ice cube floats rather than sinks, because the same mass of frozen water takes up more space.
Where people slip
Ice floating is unusual among solids, most of which are denser than their liquid form — water's hydrogen bonding is why.
Your place on the trail
Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.
Builds on
Unlocks
- Nothing yet depends on this.
Something wrong in this lesson? Flag it · Sources for Biology