Chemistry / Unit 8 Chem 1446 short lesson, about 20 seconds
Water's Anomalous Melting-Point Slope
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The idea
Water's solid-liquid curve slopes slightly negative, so its melting point falls as pressure rises, opposite most substances' positive slope.
In practice
Pressure beneath a glacier's weight can melt a thin ice layer at its base, letting the glacier slide.
Where people slip
This is a genuine anomaly, not a rule violation — most substances, including carbon dioxide, show the ordinary positive slope instead.
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