Ski Girl Says

Snow Terminology

I live in a snowy area. I love snow. I like to look at all the different types of snow crystals and flakes.  think I know a more than normal amount about it.

So, when the eastern seaboard was socked in by snowy weather this week, a national weather forecaster gave me cause for pause.  He spoke of "thundersnow."  What was this? How could there be a form of snow I have not heard of?   So I went to the typical source for facts, Wikipedia....yep, it's a wikiword.  Thundersnow is a thunderstorm with snow.

For a more official source, check out this National Geographic article on the topic.

So there you have it,"Thundersnow" is a word. Perhaps you can use it in scrabble sometime. I've seen the phenomena many a time. I just didn't know it had a name.  Now I do...and so do you.

Snow Forecasts

I love the first snow. It' signals the start of my favorite season. I love it so much, that I have somehow inadvertently built a first snow alert system. Friends from all over North America feel a need to call me or email me the first time snow falls at their home or office. It's like my own little snow radar system for a couple of weeks.

Over the summer, I wrote about great web sites for snow and how to see the snow forecast around the world.  Did you care in the summer?  If you didn't, perhaps you'd like a refresher now that snow is in season.

My favorite recommendation is this site: Intellicast.

Try this one if you are really into maps:  Snow-Forecast   It's global, kinda cool, interesting maps that show the forecast in motion. Confusing to interpret if you're not a meteorologist, and I"m not.

This last site will show you snow just at resorts.  SnowForecast 

Enjoy the first snow in your town or city, whenever it falls!

Learn About Snow

If you want to be a real geek about snow here are some resource sites to study up at:

Truly scientific stuff by people who study snow and ice for a living: National Snow and Ice Data Center

See how much snow coverage there is anywhere in North America on the Snow Cover Map.

Or, see how much snow is forecast for the day, just about anywhere with the: SNOWcast .

Just about anything you want to learn about snowflakes (natural or manufactured) is found at SnowCrystals.   In fact, there is no sense in me even attempting to tell you how snowflakes form. Within the Snow Crystals site, a bunch of really smart physicists have explained it all quite simply in the Snowflake Primer.  How can I possibly beat that?

Bentley Photography

If you love skiing, you love snow. I often think, "no one appreciates snow more than me." My friends think I am mildly obsessed when it comes to snow.  The fascination I have with snow pales in comparison however, to William Bentley's.

Bentley lived in Vermont in the late 19th -early 20th centuries. He wanted to capture the distinct designs of snowflakes. Capture them, he did. Bentley devised a way to utilize camera and microscope technology together to photograph individual snow crystals.  His work created beautiful, permanent images of mother nature's work.

The next time you walk in the snow; take a look at the individual snowflakes on your coat. Each one is different. When a crystal melts, that pattern is gone forever.  However, you can see the designs of snowflakes that existed in the 1920s and 30s, by enjoying one of Bentley's images.

To learn more about William Bentley or to see his work visit:

Snowflake Bentley by the Jericho Historical Museum, or The Bentley Snow Crystal Collection of the Buffalo Museum of Science.