The myth: Sometimes, during cold weather, it snows – but other times, it’s just so cold that it’s too cold even for snow.

The “truth” Anyone who’s lived in a country where it snows in winter will recognise the feeling behind this popular piece of folk meteorology: there are days when the cold is so intense, you have the sense that even the snow is too frozen to fall. “It’s been trying to snow all day,” people will say, “but it’s just too cold.” Professional meteorologists, however, say that nowhere on Earth can ever be literally too cold for snow; it can and does snow at extremely low temperatures. But it is true that snow is less common and less plentiful once ground level air temperatures get much below zero (the figure given varies), mainly because of a lack of water vapour in the cold air. Even then, significant snowfall can occur under certain circumstances, such as up a mountain, or over a source of heat or body of water. Snow is certainly not unknown, for instance, at the frozen Poles. Only at absolute zero (–459oF or –273oC), say the experts, would snow become impossible. Along with everything else.

1. Which of the following is not effected by wind chill?

        a. person         b. dog         c. car radiator         d. bird

Answer: c. Wind chill is the combination of wind and temperature and is based on the rate of heat loss from exposed skin such as that of a person or animal. As the wind increases, heat is carried away from the body at an accelerated rate, driving the body temperature down. Wind chill has no effect on cars or other objects.

2. What is the difference between sleet, hail, and freezing rain?

Answer: Hail is a chunk or stone of ice dropped from a thunderstorm. Sleet is frozen rain. Freezing rain is liquid rain that freezes to a surface such as the road or a tree.

3. True or False. It must be 32°F or colder for it to snow.

Answer: False. It has been known to snow with temperatures in the mid 40's. Temperatures are below 32°F up in the clouds where the snow is forming.

4. On the average, one inch of rain is equivalent to how many inches of snow?

        a. 10 inches         b. 1 inch         c. 5 inches         d. a foot

Answer: a. 10 inches of snow melts down to about an inch of liquid rain.

5.  Can it snow from clear skies?

Answer: Yes. Ice crystals sometimes fall from clear skies when temperatures are in the single digits or colder.

6. What is more hazardous to trees and power lines?

        a. One inch of wet snow         b. One inch of ice

Answer: b. An inch of ice is heavier than wet snow and is hazardous enough to cause power lines and trees to come down.
 

1.  When you move from the squat position to the upright position, keep your back as straight as possible.
2.  Lift with your legs.
3.  Use your shoulder muscles as much as possible.
4.  Hold the snow shovel as close to your upper body as possible.
5.  Keep one hand close to the shovel blade for better leverage.
6.  Don't twist your upper body as you throw snow. 
7.  Wear gloves to prevent blisters.
8.  Don’t overdress. 
9.  Take breaks. 
10. Make an appointment to get a pedicure when you are finished. 446-1313

We have all heard that every snowflake is different with its own unique shape. But, did you also know that they all have six sides? Montana holds the record for the largest snowflakes ever recorded. They were 15 inches in diameter. Stampede Pass here in Washington averages 430 inches of snowfall a year. Snowflakes fall at a speed of 3.1 miles per hour. In order for a snowstorm to be classified as a blizzard, visibility must be at 1/4 mile, winds must sustain speeds of 35 miles per hour or more and it must last for 3 or more hours.

The answer to yesterdays riddle: He was bald. (Congrats, Tonia and Allie)