Watch a Water Bottle Freeze Seconds After Being Exposed to the 'Polar Vortex' (UPDATE: How To Do It Yourself)

A video uploaded to the Internet Monday appears to show a bottle of water freeze within seconds amid brutally cold temperatures in Chicago.

According to the YouTube description, the video was shot in minus 13 degree conditions on Monday. At the time of publication, the video's view counter was stuck at 301.

The bitter cold temperatures are part of the “Polar Vortex” which is currently sweeping across the Midwest and Northwest.

Watch the video:

(H/T: Business Insider)

UPDATE:

We think we've found an explanation for the rapid freezing: it's actually a fun science experiment called "supercooling."

One blogger whose done it explains:

Supercooling is the process of lowering the temperature of a liquid (or a gas) below its freezing point without it becoming solid. We know that water normally freezes at 0°C (32°F) so supercooled water will not freeze (becoming solid) when the temperature is below 0°C. However, it won’t stay in its liquid state forever because a reaction will occur after a while. Also, there are lots of factor affecting the process such as the quality of liquid used. I can’t really explain the whole phenomenon in details without using complex scientific terms. So, if you want more details about supercooling, you should do a research on your own.

Basically, the water gets so cold but doesn't freeze, and all it takes to jump start the freezing is a little shake.

So does the woman in the above know that? Maybe, maybe not. She could have just stumbled onto the phenomenon without even knowing it.

You can get instructions on how to do it yourself, but be warned: it appears it takes a lot of practice.

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Follow Oliver Darcy (@oliverdarcy) on Twitter

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