At Ventspils Beach, BNN observed and captured on video an unusual sight last weekend – although the sea along the coast is frozen, ice floes appeared to move on their own in some places, as if pushed by an invisible force, slowly advancing toward the shore.
The video has gathered more than 250 comments, with people sharing their opinions about what might be causing the unusual movement of the ice toward the coast.
“Somewhere farther out at sea there is a strong gust that has set the water in motion, which in turn drives the ice toward the shore. If the movement continues and does not subside, what we call ice ridges in Latvian will form. During my childhood, when winters like this — and even harsher ones — were the norm, toward spring, when a strong sea wind would pick up, the ice would pile up into ridges about five meters high,” writes Facebook user Anda Munkevica.
Ginta Strauta also notes that “when the water surface is covered with ice and a sea wind picks up, the ice begins to ‘come’ ashore. We have also experienced huge ice mounds formed in this way.”
Meanwhile, social media user Nora Robalde points out that “you can see the ice in the sea is not continuous, but rather broken into pieces. Either the wind or the current is pushing them forward.”
“The main cause is wind and currents. Even if it seems that the ice is moving ‘by itself,’ it is actually driven by strong wind. The wind creates pressure on large ice sheets. They can slide over the water or even across the coastal sand. In the Baltic Sea, a wind speed of 15 km/h is enough for the ice to start moving,” explains Lilita Kivleniece.
Facebook user Lilita Kļava recalls that in 1969, ice mountains at Vecāķi Beach could be seen as late as Midsummer.
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