What is Going on in this Video?

Pancakes?

Did somebody say pancakes?

When my social media manager called this morning and told me she had pancakes for me, I was pumped! I love pancakes. But when I got into the office and didn’t smell any sort of breakfast delectable, my enthusiasm was deflated.

That is, until I saw the pancakes she was talking about!

Pancake ice!

Now, I will admit, this article is about to get really nerdy. But if you stick with me, I’ll give up my secret pancake recipe in the end.

The video shows a rare type of ice. All of those little disks are aptly named pancake ice!

This ice can form in one of two different ways.

1. A layer of slush forming on the surface of a body of water. As the slushy water starts to freeze solid, the movement of the water itself keeps the ice from forming as one massive sheet. As the little bits of frozen ice move and bump into each other they round off, forming into neat little pancakes!
2. A frozen over body of water can break up under the right circumstances. As the pieces of ice break apart they will move about, once again bumping into each other. This rounds off the jagged broken edges until the pieces form into the neat little pancakes!

Keep in mind, this is as simplified I can make the whole process. There is a whole lot more that goes into pancake ice– but your friends will be none-the-wiser when you bust out this perfectly simple explanation!

As always, if you want more information, just click on my name below and shoot me a message. I would be glad to discuss any bit of science you might be interested in!

The Recipe

A little disclaimer. I am one of the healthiest dudes you’ve ever met. These are my special recipe pancakes used for extra energy before a big run or climb (as in up some rocks).

https://www.instagram.com/p/BWYrDnPhlSn/

Ingredients:

• 2 Green Bananas (green is key– you need the starch)
• 2 Tablespoons of natural peanut butter
• 2 eggs

Simply mash the green bananas until it turns into a mushy mess. Add the peanut butter and stir until it’s an even cement. Add eggs and stir them in.

Depending on the day, I will add chia, different nuts, berries, or whatever is in the pantry at the time.

Then just cook them like normal pancakes!

For WeatherNation — Meteorologist Jeremy LaGoo