A rare natural phenomenon has filled a Siberian coast with “giant snowballs.”
According to the BBC, an 18-kilometre stretch on the Gulf of Ob in Russia has been covered in these large orbs of ice since late October. They reportedly range from the size of a tennis ball up to one metre wide.
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The Siberian Times quoted locals who expressed their shock.
“We [are] all very surprised. Many people believed it only when [they] saw with their own eyes,” said Ekaterina Chernykh.
Global News’ chief meteorologist Anthony Farnell said this is a rare natural occurrence that is a result of conditions that were “just right.”
“In this case the water on the lake rose quickly and flooded the beach in a shallow layer of water. Arctic air then partially froze the water turning it into slush,” he said. “As the water receded, small waves, wind and some beach sand helped to form small balls of ice. With each wave the balls collected more ice until some reached the size of basketballs or bigger.”
Farnell added that calling these orbs “snowballs” is a misnomer since they’re made out of lake ice.
“These can weigh more than 50 pounds because they’re solid ice,” he said.
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In January 2014, Lake Michigan experienced the same phenomenon after the so-called polar vortex swept through the region.