Whether you like it or not, snow is a major part of winter. There are tons of snow curiosities floating around that you probably didn’t know about.
Snow affects sound
Freshly fallen snow absorbs sound waves, which makes everything sound quieter. But then, when it melts and refreezes, the ice can reflect the sound waves, making the sound travel further and clearer.
Raised from a nucleus
Snowflakes or snow crystals do not have nuclei that contain genetic information. Instead, they form around a single particle, either dust or pollen.
Snowflakes have many patterns
One of the determining factors in the form of snow is the air temperature. The Snow Hair study identified that long, thin needle-like ice crystals form at about -2°C, while a temperature of -5°C will form very flat crystals.
Snow hair recognition
The first person to capture a photograph of a snowflake was a farmer from Jericho, Vermont. After years of experimenting with attaching microscopes to a camera, in 1885 Wilson Bentley captured the first photograph of a snowflake.
Snow formation
The first step in the formation of a snowflake is a drop of extremely cold water that freezes on a speck of pollen or dust in the sky. Then, the vapor freezes on the primary ice crystal as it falls to the ground, which then builds new crystals.
Snow in March
According to NASA, there can be sudden and violent snowstorms on Mars. Scientists have also discovered a snowflake cloud of carbon dioxide over the planet’s south pole.
Snow warms you
Because snow is 90 to 95% trapped air, it is an excellent insulator. This is why many animals burrow deep into the snow to hibernate and why igloos are warmer inside than outside.
Snow can make you blind
Because of its structure, snow reflects a large amount of sunlight. Without the protection of sunglasses, the cornea and conjunctiva of the eye can burn. Snow blindness, or known in medical terms as actinic keratosis and photokeratitis, can result in vision loss.
