If ice is heavier then water, why dies it float?

Answer 1

Ice is less dense than water

Answer 2

This is the same as asking which is heavier:

A kilogram of feathers or a kilogram of lead?

They weigh the same! However, lead is far more dense than the feathers.

When dealing with things that float, you have two properties, density and displacement. Density is determined by how close the molecules of a material are to each other, displacement is a function of volume of a substance when immersed in liquid.

That's why a steel aircraft carrier can float on water, because it displaces a huge amount of water, which keeps it afloat, instead of sinking to the bottom of the ocean.

Ice is the same way. When frozen, the water molecules which when in a liquid state rolled freely around each other, instead arrange into a rigid crystalline structure, increasing the distance between each molecule.

Therefore, ice is less dense than the surrounding water, which means it has more volume comparable to the same amount of liquid water, and is thus able to displace enough water to remain afloat.

See the source for a good read on water! ;)

Answer 3

Ice is less dense than water, not heavier than water. Weight is not important if you are dealing with a solid block of material.

Answer 4

Ice is less dense than water. Water has a density of 1.00 gram/cubic center.
Ice has a density of 0.931 gram/cubic centimeter.
The difference is due to the Hydrogen bonding.
It's just enough to keep ice at the top of your bottle/glass etc.

Answer 5

it's all about density! water has a rare quality in which if you heat it, it expands (into steam) and if you freeze it, it expands (this is why if you have a glass of ice water and let it sit, as the ice melts the level will go down). Water is actually most dense at 4 degrees celcius...going warmer or colder from there causes expansion

Answer 6

Ice is not heavier than water.