Your Daily Facts about Snow
Based on National Climatic Data Center records, New York state is home to the snowiest cities in the United States: Syracuse averages 115 inches of snow per year, and Rochester averages 93 inches per year. However, several less populated areas around the country receive much more snow. For instance, Mount Washington, New Hampshire, has an average annual snowfall of 260 inches, and Valdez, Alaska, averages 326 inches annually. To see average snowfall totals for other areas in the United States, visit the National Climatic Data Center Web page, Snowfall – average total in inches.
Each year an average of 105 snow-producing storms affect the continental United States. A typical storm will have a snow-producing lifetime of two to five days and will bring snow to portions of several states.
Nationwide, the average snowfall amount per day when snow falls is about two inches, but in some mountain areas of the West, an average of seven inches per snow day is observed.
Snow kills hundreds of people in the United States each year. The primary snow-related deaths are from traffic accidents, overexertion, and exposure, but deaths from avalanches have been steadily increasing.
Snow at the North and South Pole reflect heat into space!! That happens because the ice acts like a mirror with the heat of the sun, and the heat bounces off the ice and into space.
Snowflakes start as ice crystals that are the size of a speck of dust. When the crystals fall they join up with other crystals to form a snowflake. The size of the snowflake depends on how many crystals hook together. Snowflakes usually have six sides.
Skiers have created their own snow terminology over the years to describe snow. They have derived descriptive words such as “powder” “sticky” “fluffy” “champagne powder” and “mashed potatoes”. The favorite snow condition can easily be identified as “powder” or fresh, new, natural snow, untouched by skiers.
Believe it or not, snow is actually clear/transparent. Snow appears white because the crystals act as prisms, breaking up the light of the sun into the entire spectrum of color. The human eye is unable to handle that kind of sensory overload. Therefore, we see the snow as white or sometimes blue. The color of snow can depend on the environment in which you live. Some snowflakes look like they are pink. If you live in a place where your soil is red, snow is pink. The red dust blows into the clouds, discoloring the snow.