Outside of Minecraft, “igloo” is the word used by Inuit peoples to describe a house or shelter built out of snow. You might think that would be a chilly place to live, but actually the air trapped in the snow makes it a really good insulator. Even if the temperature outside is -45C, the temperature inside an igloo warmed by body heat alone can be as high as 16C.
Traditionally, igloos were only used by the Inuit living in Canada’s Central Arctic region, and the Qaanaaq area of Greenland, while other Inuit built houses from whalebone and hides and just insulated them with snow. There are three types – the smallest is a temporary shelter, used for just one or two nights on a hunting trip. Medium-sized igloos were for families to live in on a semi-permanent basis, often in a cluster with others. Finally, the largest size were used to house multiple families, with up to five rooms and 20 people, often with a large space for special occasions.
To make one, snow bricks are cut out of the ground with saws and stacked carefully into a dome shape. If done correctly, with the right kind of snow, the bricks lean on each other and support their own weight. If done incorrectly, with the wrong kind of snow, it all collapses. A tunnel is used as an entrance to keep the wind out, and sometimes the interior would be heated after construction to melt the inside and then allow it to refreeze into ice to add additional strength.
So now you know how to build an igloo. Consider trying it out next time you find yourself in a snowy landscape – either inside of Minecraft, or out of it.
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