Learn about some of the amazing properties of snow

Arabia's weather - snow is known as one of the types of precipitation that falls in the form of ice crystals, where ice crystals form in clouds when the temperatures are below the freezing point (0 degrees Celsius or 32 degrees Fahrenheit), and then water vapor condenses in the atmosphere directly in the form Ice without going through the liquid phase, and once the ice crystal is formed, it becomes a nucleus on which more water vapor in the surrounding air freezes, turning into an ice crystal or snow granule, and then falls to the ground.

Ice is part of the basic components that cover the surface of the Earth, where the snow resides on the frosted cover of the form of so- called ice cover (Cryosphere), which includes the ice that covers the seas, lakes and glaciers, and snow covering the mountain peaks and many other areas, and ice sheets in frozen areas , And others.

Snowfall forms

Snow from clouds falls on the surface of the earth in several forms:

1. Ice chips (Snowflakes): It is a grouping of ice crystals that fall from the clouds.

2. ice granules (Snow Pellets): or what is also called cold soft (Graupel), which is a non - transparent particles icy diameter 2-5 mm, which is formed in the atmosphere when they gather on the snowflakes falling water droplets small and very cold ( Its temperature is below freezing point but remains liquid), so the water droplets freeze and form a lump or ice particles that are soft and crumbly.

3. freezing rain (Sleet): a precipitation in the form of small balls transparent snow is usually smaller than the diameter of 0.76 cm, and is made up of rain drops or spray rain that freezes during the fall, a wintry mix of rain and snow.

4. Cold (Hail): It is a form of solid precipitation, which may not be considered as snow, where the cold beads are formed usually during thunderstorms, which can also occur in the spring and summer in some areas, ranging diameter cold beads between 2 mm up diameter sometimes even 15 cm, and hail grains are formed when the air moves up in the form of up-currents ( updrafts ) during thunderstorms, which prevent the rising air currents from falling into the soft hail particles, which causes the grains to grow into ice balls so heavy that the rising air cannot continue to block them From a fall, it falls as large hailstones.

Snow colors

Visible white light consists of a group of spectra, which are the colors that we see when sunlight decomposes through raindrops to reveal a rainbow with its many colors, and people see the colors of things through what they absorb and reflect from the white sunlight, and the homogeneous white color in which snow and ice appear , Caused by the complete reflection of visible light when it falls on snow.

However, snow or ice may appear in blue sometimes, due to the occurrence of light scattering, and snow may appear in other colors because it contains some particles or organisms, snow may appear red or pink due to the presence of a form of cold-loving freshwater algae that Containing a bright red hue, red snow is more common in the summer in the alpine regions, as well as along the coastal polar regions.

And red snow appears in the Taylor Glacier in Antarctica, but for a different reason, Blood Falls, in the Taylor Glacier in Antarctica, the dark red color is caused by salt water seeping from an old reservoir under the glacier, and this water is rich in iron, which oxidizes when it comes into contact with the air in the atmosphere Resulting in a bright red color.

Dark-colored particles such as dust and soot can change the appearance of snow, and they also increase the speed of ice melting because they absorb more sunlight, and new storms may add layers of white snow over them, but these layers of dust will reappear when the upper layers melt.

What is the reason for the calm that sometimes accompanies snowfall?

The characteristics of snow and its age can affect how the sound waves are transmitted, people often notice how the sound changes after a new snowfall, when the ground contains a thick layer of blown snow, the sound waves are easily absorbed on the surface of the snow, which reduces the sound and creates calmness, However, time and weather conditions may change the surface of the snow. If the surface melts and freezes, the snow becomes smooth and hard, which helps the reflection of sound waves, making the sounds appear clearer and travel farther distances.

Use of ice as a heat insulator

Snow is a good insulator to the extent that some animals take advantage of the insulating qualities of snow and dig snow caves in which they spend their winter hibernation, as the new snow consists of a high percentage of air trapped in the spaces between the accumulated snow crystals, which reduces the heat transfer significantly, where the snow is formed Blown talk from 90 to 95 percent of trapped air.

The effect of snow on the world

Scientists around the world continue to study snow even though they have already learned a lot about its properties. Although snow only exists in certain parts of the world, it has far-reaching impacts on climate, weather, the environment, water supply, wildlife and humans, for example. In places like Greenland and Antarctica, very ancient snowflakes can reveal valuable information about past climate conditions Earth has experienced.

By studying snow, how it forms, where it falls, and how the ice changes over time, scientists can better understand how snow affects our planet and our society. Snow has many effects on people's lives, such as its effect on weather conditions and weather forecasts, and its role in the emergence of risks in Travel, air and marine navigation, road and infrastructure design, snow affects the environment through wildlife migration and survival, the timing of spring blooms, and more.