During the Terra Nova Expedition in 1911, British geologist Thomas Griffith Taylor stumbled upon a mesmerizing sight in Antarctica—a waterfall that appeared to be flowing with blood.
For over a hundred years, this phenomenon, known as “Blood Falls,” has baffled scientists and captured the imagination of the public. However, researchers at Johns Hopkins University revealed a recent breakthrough in a press release that has finally shed light on this perplexing natural wonder.
The Culprit Behind the Crimson Flow
Ken Livi, a research scientist at Johns Hopkins’ Materials Characterization and Processing facility, employed powerful transmission electron microscopes to investigate the samples from Blood Falls.
His examination revealed the presence of minuscule, iron-rich nanospheres in abundance within the water, which oxidizes to give it a gory appearance. These nanospheres— one-hundredth the size of a human red blood cell— possess unique physical and chemical characteristics, containing elements such as silicon, calcium, aluminum, and sodium.
