The Old Folks Home

[ronott1]

Are you saying that snowflakes that big, and bigger are not normal?

I bet is is usually colder and dryer when it snows there:

WHAT CAUSES GIANT SNOWFLAKES?

METEOROLOGIST JEFF HABY
An individual snow crystal has 6 sides and is very small. A snowflake is composed of several of these 6 sided crystals.

Whether snow is more dry or more wet depends on the snow to liquid equivalent. When the temperature throughout the troposphere is well below freezing the snow is term a "dry snow". A dry snow has little to no liquid within the snowflakes. During a dry snow, snowflakes tend to be smaller. Also, when trying to make a snowball, it falls apart for the most part.

In a situation in which part of the troposphere is very near or just above freezing, the snowflake will partially melt. This produces a liquid film on the snowflake. This makes it much easier for snowflakes to stick together. Thus, it is liquid water that is the "glue" to producing large snowflakes and snow that is easy to make snowballs with. While a dry heavy snow tends to have a huge amount of small snowflakes, a heavy wet snow tends to have a smaller number of snowflakes but the individual snowflakes are large.

While a raindrop has a theoretical size it can grow to before breaking, the limit to the maximum size of a snowflake is less defined. In a heavy wet snow situation in which the winds are light, snowflakes can grow to silver dollar size diameter or larger. This situation can look like little snowballs falling from the sky. Light wind prevents the snowflakes from breaking into pieces and the liquid film around each snowflake helps them stick and accrete to surrounding snowflakes as they fall.

It is difficult to determine what the largest snowflakes to have fallen are since the snowflake splashes into a pool of snow as it hits the ground. Eyewitness accounts are the main source of information. Some have reported snowflake complexes to the size of baseballs or larger but many of these reports are difficult to verify.

The ultimate weather education website: http://www.theweatherprediction.com/

 

[drumstick diva]

SCG let us see the photo and decide for ourselves

 

[drumstick diva]

AW so sorry SCG

 

[getaclue]

So sorry you lost 2, scg.

 

[superchemicalgirl]

There needs to be a 4 drink minimum before dealing with the federal government.

 

[ronott1]

There needs to be a 4 drink minimum before dealing with the federal government.

 

[getaclue]

ron, very informative. As everyone knows I'm from the south. Way down south, near Tampa, in Central Florida, so we don't get snow. Well, yeah we did once in the past 60 years, but it was a fluke, and all melted by mid afternoon. Anyway, the first time I actually saw snow was about 8 years ago. I went to Paducah Kentucky. It snowed a little bit one of the days I was there. My daughter was moving back to Florida after the death of my father, so she was going to follow me back to Florida in her car.

Before we left KY, she wanted to say goodbye to a friend, so we stopped there on our way out of the state. While there, it began snowing lightly. In a bit, her friend's mother told us we better get a move on. There was a big snow storm headed for Tennessee, and we needed to get going to get ahead of it. She knew I had NEVER driven in snow before, and didn't have snow tires. We took off, and it was snowing lightly all through KY. They use the same type de-icer as on airplanes, so it was smooth sailing. When we hit the KY/TN line, things changed quickly. When we crossed over into TN, the first thing I noticed is they don't treat their roads. The second thing I noticed is that the snowflakes were getting bigger, and coming faster.

Within 30 minutes, the snowflakes were more like the size of sheets of toilet paper, and coming fast, and hard. I've seen every Rudolph the red nosed reindeer tv special, and all the Frosty the snowman ones too. Santa, nor Frosty ever faced anything like that Tennessee snowstorm. Before we got through it, it was like millions of sheets of paper towels being hurled at us. The truckers could not see, and instead of using all 3 lanes, only used two. Everyone else followed behind. No one went faster than 15 mph. If you left a car space and a half between you, and the truck ahead of you, the tracks got covered so fast, you couldn't see them. It took hours to get to Chattanooga, and past the blizzard. Cars had careened off the road everywhere. Later, the news reported that the area we were in, had 26 cars careen off the road in the first 30 minutes of the storm. It took them awhile to get emergency crews, and snow clearing equipment on the interstate, so by the time they did, the number of stranded cars was very high.

I drove carefully, and steadily. I got through without a problem, and my daughter was right behind me. Even she was shaken up by it all, and she was used to driving in snow. Seeing the huge dollops of snow on that blanket reminded me of the first time I drove in snow.

 

[superchemicalgirl]

My original birth certificate is invalid.

INVALID.

I've been using that puppy since I was born.

I produced the last passport I was issued (when I was 15). They took it, yet that's not enough to prove I'm a citizen. Oh and he didn't think I looked like my picture, to add more insult to the situation.

Then, you can't smile in pictures any longer! Teeth are verboten. TEETH!! How am I going to commit acts of terrorism by showing my teeth? Or by wearing glasses? Or earrings.

Oh, the horror.

I'm now waiting for my replacement official birth certificate. Or my deportation orders.

 

[getaclue]

There needs to be a 4 drink minimum before dealing with the federal government.

We all agree.

 

[ronott1]

ron, very informative. As everyone knows I'm from the south. Way down south, near Tampa, in Central Florida, so we don't get snow. Well, yeah we did once in the past 60 years, but it was a fluke, and all melted by mid afternoon. Anyway, the first time I actually saw snow was about 8 years ago. I went to Paducah Kentucky. It snowed a little bit one of the days I was there. My daughter was moving back to Florida after the death of my father, so she was going to follow me back to Florida in her car.

Before we left KY, she wanted to say goodbye to a friend, so we stopped there on our way out of the state. While there, it began snowing lightly. In a bit, her friend's mother told us we better get a move on. There was a big snow storm headed for Tennessee, and we needed to get going to get ahead of it. She knew I had NEVER driven in snow before, and didn't have snow tires. We took off, and it was snowing lightly all through KY. They use the same type de-icer as on airplanes, so it was smooth sailing. When we hit the KY/TN line, things changed quickly. When we crossed over into TN, the first thing I noticed is they don't treat their roads. The second thing I noticed is that the snowflakes were getting bigger, and coming faster.

Within 30 minutes, the snowflakes were more like the size of sheets of toilet paper, and coming fast, and hard. I've seen every Rudolph the red nosed reindeer tv special, and all the Frosty the snowman ones too. Santa, nor Frosty ever faced anything like that Tennessee snowstorm. Before we got through it, it was like millions of sheets of paper towels being hurled at us. The truckers could not see, and instead of using all 3 lanes, only used two. Everyone else followed behind. No one went faster than 15 mph. If you left a car space and a half between you, and the truck ahead of you, the tracks got covered so fast, you couldn't see them. It took hours to get to Chattanooga, and past the blizzard. Cars had careened off the road everywhere. Later, the news reported that the area we were in, had 26 cars careen off the road in the first 30 minutes of the storm. It took them awhile to get emergency crews, and snow clearing equipment on the interstate, so by the time they did, the number of stranded cars was very high.

I drove carefully, and steadily. I got through without a problem, and my daughter was right behind me. Even she was shaken up by it all, and she was used to driving in snow. Seeing the huge dollops of snow on that blanket reminded me of the first time I drove in snow.

I see snow if I go up to the Mountains. My Mom's place is at 4500ft. When the snow starts it is usually warm and gets colder as the storm moves in. The flakes go from big and wet to small dry and stingy.

I really like the big wet snow flakes.