[2001 ZTS]

I haven't seen any of these shows but it's not a big leap of faith to believe the "Sea" froze, it is not a sea at all in the modern sense. It is a small fresh water lake by Canadian standards, a mere puddle compared to what we are used to:

http://www.factmonster.com/ipka/A0001777.html

Even today Lebanon, Isreal, Iran and Iraq get snow "often". Often enough snow to have Winter Olympic teams and ski resorts. The flag of The Lebanon features a Lebonese Cedar (pine tree) and the fact that the surface of the "sea" is the 2nd deepest place (below sea level) on the whole planet should raise red flags, cold air sinks as we all know.

All deserts get very cold at night with no surface absorbtion, lots of surface reflection and no heat sinks. The "sea" is a good heat sink but a cold blast can freeze the surface.

It is the nature of H2O water molecules and the connection (bond) of the two hydrogen molecules to the oxygen.

As water gets colder and moves ("vibrates") less the angle between the H atoms relative to the O gets greater (starting around +3.5^C) and explains why unlike most other (99.9% of) molecules, when liquid water turns to a solid it floats rather than sinks. There are very very few other solids that are less dense than their liquid counterparts. It is all the type of "bond".

BOND, ...........HYDROGEN BOND.

Water truly is "miraculous" in its behaviour and abundance here on earth, and is why we look for it first of all on other worlds. We exist only because of hydrogen bonding.

Besides people don't understand temperature. Even the news today said because it reached a high of 5 today and it will be 15 tomorrow that it will be "3 times warmer". In reality it will be:

((15-5)/-273)*100%=4% warmer

P.S.: Ask me where gold comes from and why it is so valuable, I dare you.