The polar vortex that has gripped the US and Canada this week has led to some spectacular icy images.
The latest come from Niagara Falls, which partially froze when the temperature hit a record low of minus 2 degrees.
Aaron Harris, a photographer for Reuters, took several shots of the 167-foot frozen falls.
The ice formed on the US side of the falls, which straddle the border with Canada.
While unusual, it’s not the first time Niagara Falls has frozen.
Photographs from the early- and mid-1900s archived at Niagara Falls Public Library appear to show frozen falls, though some experts have questioned their authenticity.
Of course, the eye-catching freeze did not completely stop water from flowing.
According to EnvironmentalGraffiti.com, only once has freezing weather “caused the thousands of cubic feet of water per second flowing over the Niagara Falls to run dry, an event thought to have been caused by ice jamming and damming upriver,” and that was in 1848.
The partial freeze should thaw later this week, according to forecasts, when the temperature at the falls is expected to rise to 46 degrees.
