What Are the ‘Fingers of Death’ Beneath Antarctica That Freeze Everything in Their Path?

The underwater world is filled with captivating features, one of which is the "Fingers of Death." The "Fingers of Death" are brinicles found beneath Antarctica’s winter ice, IFL Science reported. This feature is especially hard for critters whose habitat these brinicles pierce through after their formation.

The term 'brinicle' is a combination of brine and icicle, The Guardian reported. The structure grows downwards from sheet ice. This phenomenon is a result of the freezing process that takes place inside the Antarctic ice, which forces out salt, resulting in intensely cold, salty water. The accumulated salt water known as brine, is heavier than normal sea water and therefore starts sinking to the bottom.

The concentrated brine's temperature freezes other seawater on contact, as it descends on a downward trajectory. The interaction between brine and seawater, results in the formation of a tube-shaped brinicle whose inner wall is constantly melting, while the outer wall is freezing, at the same time. 

Experts have noted that a brinicle can expand 25cm in diameter and grow rapidly in length within a single day. After the structure clashes with the sea floor, the brinicle spreads out into a sheet of ice, known as anchor ice, attached to the sea bed.

The structure is dangerous for many aquatic beings under the Antarctic ice as it can engulf creatures like sea urchins and freeze them on the spot, The Guardian reported. In this pursuit, the brinicle is aided by its fast pace of growth. 

The process was first noted in the 1960s but could only be captured in 2011. To this date, many parts of the procedure are yet to be fully understood, even by experts.

In 2011, the formation process of the brinicle was recorded by a crew working on the series Frozen Planet, IFL Science reported. To capture the whole process, underwater cameraman, Hugh Miller put into place an underwater camera that could take a time-lapse.