Lake Michigan Is Turning Into a Giant Pit of Ice Shards and It's Oddly Beautiful

It must be spring, because Lake Michigan is thawing out into an otherworldly patch of glittering ice shards.

The water beneath the lake’s frozen surface has begun to thaw and is creating a sea of ice shards that look like something out of a Disney film or Game of Thrones scene. As the water below the surface melts, it pushes the remaining ice into a formation like the quills of a porcupine.

Although the ice may look beautiful, it is most definitely not safe for people to explore.

"No ice is safe ice, especially this time of year," U.S. Coast Guard boatswain’s mate chief petty officer Grant Heffner told Michigan Live on Wednesday. "The ice is certainly deteriorating and breaking up."

The lake has been frozen since January when a polar vortex walloped the area and brought subzero temperatures. After the storm, ice shelves formed over 56 percent of the lake’s surface. The Coast Guard warned against walking out on the ice as its instability created sudden patches where it became unpredictable. Warmer temperatures over the past two weeks have caused the unusual and beautiful ice shard formations.