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why can we skate on ice?

why can we skate on ice?


 

Grade:9

2 Answers

Amit Jain
askIITians Faculty 10 Points
10 years ago
skate blade never touches the ice directly. A thin layer of water is formed between the two surfaces, so that the blades are actually gliding on the film of water. A skater exerts a pressure equal to her weight divided by the area of the skate blade on the ice. Since the area of each blade is very small, the pressure on the ice is very large. The large pressure melts a small amount of ice directly beneath each blade, forming a thin layer of water. Skate blades must be kept sharp, or the skater's weight will be distributed over too large an area, and the skater will be unable to exert enough pressure to melt any ice.
Indu
47 Points
10 years ago
when the person keeps the skates on the ice, the ice melts due to the pressure exerted by the weight of the person. The forms a groove in which you can skate. The moment the skates ahead, the ice behind solidifies again. Thus, it is possible to skate on ice. I think that it`s because when you step onto the you create friction, and friction also heats things up causing the ice to melt below the metal blade. Water is like a lubricant, so it creates less friction between the blade and the ice allowing you to skate on it. The water soon freezes again.

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