The surprising secret of polar bear fur

Despite living in the Arctic, where temperatures hit-40° F, polar bears stay warm thanks to their blubber (fat) and thick fur. Those layers keep heat in and cold out. But scientists have found that polar bear fur provides more than insulation. It also contains oil that prevents ice from building up at all. At first the researchers thought the structure of polar bear fur was what kept ice from sticking to it, but when they examined the fur under a microscope, they realized that wasn’t the case. They noticed something else, however: The fur was very oily. The team suspected that could be what prevented the fur from freezing. To test their theory, they froze blocks of ice onto washed and unwashed polar bear fur, human hair, and ski equipment,…

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The Week Junior US (Digital) - 1 Issue, Issue 254

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