HOWTO preserve a snowflake

David Pescovitz 11:07 am Wed Mar 22, 2006

I've previously posted about Wilson Alwyn Bentley who in the late 19th century created an amazing collection of snowflake photomicrographs. Inspired by Bentley, Icelandic chemist Tryggvi Emilsson came up with a way to "preserve" the structure of snowflakes using superglue and microscope slides. The snowflake seen here has been stored in Emilsson's desk since 1979. From Popular Science:

1. Set microscope slides, coverslips and superglue outside when it’s 20°F or colder to chill them. Catch flakes on the slides or pick them up with cold tweezers.

2. Place a drop of superglue on the snowflake. Note: Gel glue doesn’t work. Find a brand that’s thin and runny.

3. Drop a coverslip over the glue. Don’t press down hard or the flake could tear or melt from the heat of your finger.

4. Leave the slide in a freezer for one or two weeks and don’t touch it with warm hands. The glue must completely harden before the snowflake warms up.

Link (Thanks, Lindsay Tiemeyer!)

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