What is the story about?
You'd never know just by looking - or even being there for that matter, but over the decades, an unusual phenomenon has kept scientists always tapped in at the edge
of northeastern Hudson Bay in Canada. There is no myth or illusion at play here, but if you were to weigh yourself in this area, the scale will clock in lower than what you're used to seeing. You won't feel lighter, or even see this difference, because of course, you haven't literally lost weight by simply walking into a zone. But what's at play here can best be described as a glitch in the Earth which has fascinated scientists and visitors for decades on end.
What Do We Already Know About This Gravitational Anomaly?
This phenomenon was identified in the 1960s, but the answer dates back to the Ice Age. Put simply, there are two theories at work here. The first is the 'rebound effect' from the melting of the Laurentide Ice Sheet during the Ice Age, which covered a huge part of Canada. As per a How Stuff Works analysis of the phenomenon, the GRACE satellite data attributes 25% to 45% of the gravitational anomaly to the melting of the ice sheet, while the rest of the impact is due to the Earth's mantle convection that alters mass distribution - which is what will make you 'weigh less' in this region.Now while gravity as a phenomenon is universal, it is also proportional to mass. And with respect to the Earth, which bulges at the equator and flattens towards the poles, gravity can actually vary, depending where on Earth it is being measured. What sets Hudson Bay apart in this scenario is the melting of the Lauretide Ice Sheet. This ice sheet uniformly ran 3.2 kilometres thick except for two areas in the Hudson Bay where it was 3.7 kilometres in girth. Though the ice sheet did melt off over a period of 10,000 years, it weighed down the Earth in these regions in the process, leaving a deep indentation.
Given that the Earth's rebound rate is incredibly slow - meaning the indented surface 'bounces back' less than half an inch every year - and that some of the Earth has been pushed to the sides by the weight and eventual melting of the ice sheet, all in all the final result is lesser Earth mass in this region, which also means less gravity.
Can You Visit the Hudson Bay?
The Hudson Bay is absolutely open for a visit, August through April being the prime time to visit. This is also a great stretch for catching the Aurora Borealis. The Hudson Bay can best be accessed through the town of Churchill, Manitoba, which is also known as the polar bear capital of the world. It is accessible only via plane or train as there is no road access to the coast. If catching polar bears in the landscape is on your agenda, the months of October and November will be the best time to visit.During the summer, boat tours offer beluga whale views. Besides this, there is also the option of enjoying helicopter tours, tundra buggy trips as well as a visit to the Wapsuk National Park.
