Ice Caves Bioluminescence Explained

[Jaspo]

Apparently the glowing ice as seen in TLD's ice caves can really happen:

https://weather.com/storms/winter/video/glowing-plankton-form-dots-of-light-in-snow-in-russian-arctic

[I_eat_only_wolf_meat]

41 minutes ago, Jaspo said:

Apparently the glowing ice as seen in TLD's ice caves can really happen:

https://weather.com/storms/winter/video/glowing-plankton-form-dots-of-light-in-snow-in-russian-arctic

And there really are a few kinds of mushrooms that glow (faintly) in the dark.  The bright orange, and often huge jack o'lantern is one of them.  It's pretty common in North America.  Sadly not edible, though.  It will make you sick, but not dead.

I almost confused these for cinnabar chanterelles, which are edible and delicious.  This would have been a rookie mushroom hunter mistake, but I was a rookie.  Happily, I double-checked before cooking up the jacks.

[hozz1235]

22 hours ago, Jaspo said:

Apparently the glowing ice as seen in TLD's ice caves can really happen:

https://weather.com/storms/winter/video/glowing-plankton-form-dots-of-light-in-snow-in-russian-arctic

Interesting, but doesn't plankton only live in water (either salt or fresh)?

[SysGhost]

On 1/4/2022 at 10:02 PM, hozz1235 said:

Interesting, but doesn't plankton only live in water (either salt or fresh)?

I suspect these plankton just got washed up into the snow. Now stuck in the ice/snow, the plankton does what plankton do.

But that's my far fetched guess. Maybe plankton can live in solid water.