It would seem, what could be in common between the most popular movie epic "Star Wars" and the frozen lake? Oddly enough, but this is voice acting. Due to simple but invisible physical processes, the ice-bound body of water can emit eerie, extraterrestrial sounds, as if a lone stormtrooper is shooting (and, of course, not hitting) someone with a blaster.
On a quiet and dark January night, as soon as you get out into the vicinity of a frozen lake, strange things begin to happen. In the stillness of the night, creaks, groans and a loud crunch will be heard, although at first glance there is complete calm around, as if the world had stopped. So what is the reason - ghosts, inhabitants of dungeons, hallucinations from drinking during the New Year's holidays? The answer is very simple: the lake itself is making noise.
Despite the fact that the frozen lake may seem dead, frozen in time, in fact, it is changeable and unstable. This phenomenon is observed in many parts of the world, and in 2014 its recording became a real viral video, which was watched 11 million (!) Times. The amazing sound, as if from a science fiction movie, is usually produced by the ice itself, which contracts and expands as a result of temperature fluctuations.
Ice movement produces a nearly full spectrum of audio frequencies, both high and low. The high-pitched vibrations reach your ears first, so there is a sense of delay when listening, as Skunk Bear explains. You must be at the correct distance from the ice to hear this sound, and the same process happens with metal in the cold. To some, these sounds will resemble the sound of a blaster from Star Wars, which is not surprising: according to the sound engineer, the same principle was used to create them: the master simply struck the wires of the radio antenna with a wrench, causing sound vibrations.
Vasily Makarov