Whether you love or hate snow, it’s good for one thing—making snowmen.
As the temperature drops in an area, water droplets start to solidify into ice crystals.
The ice crystals form together to create a snowflake that falls to the ground.
Not all snow is the same, however.
Here’s what you need to know about whether you can make a snowman with powdery snow or not.
Can You Make A Snowman With Powdery Snow?
No, you cannot make a snowman with powdery snow.
While you can attempt to do so, you’ll find that snow doesn’t compact in your hands.
Instead, it falls apart.
Since you’re unable to compact the snow, forming the body of a snowman is impossible.
That said, you can do something to the powdery snow that can make it more compactable.
Powdery snow is powdery because it’s fresh and dry.
Over time, it melts and freezes again to become firmer.
It’s at this point you can start to make a snowman out of it.
However, if you don’t want to wait for the powdery snow to become more compactable, then you can speed up the process.
To do that, all you need to do is pour some cold water on the snow.
You don’t want to use warm or hot water as this will only melt the snow away.
You’ll need to fill a bowl or bucket with icy cold water.
You can even leave the water outside for a while to become cold, but you’ll need to keep an eye on it to keep it from freezing over.
Then, you simply pour your cold water over the snow.
This will moisten the powdery snow and make it easier to compact together.
It won’t be perfect, but if you’re desperate to make a snowman at that moment, then this solution can get you started.
That said, it’s often better to wait for the powdery snow to become firmer.
Making a snowman in powdery snow is extremely difficult if not impossible.
What Types Of Snow Are There?
While everyone can usually tell powdery snow apart from the rest of the snow, there are actually several different snow types.
They differ based on their crystal formation and density.
Here are the different types of snow.
1. Perennial Snow
Perennial snow is a type of snow that sticks around all year.
It exists in colder climates that either don’t see a lot of sun or have temperatures that are too cold for the sun to properly melt the snow.
You can find perennial snow in cold places like Antarctica as well as in areas with high altitudes.
Mountain ranges are often places where you can find perennial snow.
Because it’s colder at higher altitudes, there’s usually snow at the top of tall mountains since it never gets warm enough to melt.
That’s why hypothermia is a real concern for anyone looking to hike on tall mountains.
2. Seasonal Snow
This is the type of snow that most people see.
Depending on the area’s proximity to the sun, the air’s temperature may be warm or cold.
When it’s colder, the water droplets fall as snow rather than as rain because they solidify into ice crystals.
Seasonal snow only lasts for a few months before melting away as warmer temperatures return.
The length of the seasonal snow depends on the area.
Areas further away from the equator tend to have longer periods of seasonal snow than those closer to the equator.
3. Old Snow
People often confuse perennial snow and old snow with one another.
They’re a little different.
Old snow refers to snow that has been there so long that no one knows how old it actually is.
There may be old snow mixed with perennial snow, but it’s going to be the lower layer of perennial snow with perennial snow on top of it.
Even though perennial snow might melt here and there, old snow tends to remain.
It may undergo some changes but because it’s impossible to know the age or the original conformation of its ice crystals, it’s difficult to know what those changes actually were.
4. Neve
If you want to make a snowman, then neve is the type of snow that you want to use.
Neve forms when snow falls, melts, then freezes over again.
The result is a type of snow that’s extremely dense and compactable.
It’s able to support a great deal of weight as a result.
If there’s enough neve, then it can even form glaciers.
The glaciers in the Arctic Ocean have neve as their primary foundation holding them together.
However, because neve can melt when exposed to warm temperatures, its foundation can crumble.
That’s also why glaciers melt.
They’re not only made of ice.
The majority of them are a mixture of ice and neve.
Any time snow melts a little and then freezes over again, you have neve snow in your yard.
5. Firn
If neve snow sticks around long enough, then there’s a chance that it can become firn.
Firn is like neve in that it’s snow that has melted and frozen again.
The difference is that firn is at least a year old.
It also has 55% density, which makes it great for compacting and making snowmen.
Firn is also part of a glacier’s structure.
If snow lasts long in your area, then you may have a chance of seeing neve snow turn into firn snow.
6. New Snow
Unlike old snow, new snow is very easy to spot.
The ice crystals are usually fresh and newly formed.
This means they tend to shine and glimmer under the light.
New snow also sits on the surface.
Depending on a few variables like temperature and humidity, the new snow may take the form of neve or powdery snow.
7. Powdery Snow
That leads to powdery snow as the last type of snow.
Powdery snow comes from dry conditions.
If the temperature is cold but there’s little humidity, then powdery snow forms.
This type of snow is crumbly and doesn’t stick together well.
That’s because the ice crystals form in a certain way in dry conditions as opposed to moist conditions.
Powdery snow is also easier to melt since it’s already very dry.
What Are The Different Types Of Snow Ice Crystals?
While there are different types of snow, there are also different types of ice crystals.
Ice crystals form snow in the first place and the type of crystal that it is can determine how the snow is going to form.
Here are the different types of ice crystals.
1. Polycrystals
As its name might suggest, polycrystals have several different ice crystals attached together.
They can create unique snowflakes that are quite large since they have several different crystals meshed together.
If you examine snowflakes, you’ll be able to pick out the polycrystal ones by looking for large flakes or flakes that seem to have merged.
2. Snowflakes
Polycrystals and snowflakes are slightly different.
Snowflakes are usually made out of a single ice crystal.
However, they can sometimes merge with other snowflakes when falling to the earth.
These aren’t technically classified as polycrystals, however, since they were not initially created with more than one ice crystal.
Polycrystals are first made with several crystals, then released out of the cloud to the earth.
Snowflakes are the most noticeable types of ice crystals.
3. Hoarfrost
You might mistake hoarfrost for fallen snow, but it’s actually different.
Hoarfrost forms when an object’s surface is colder than the temperature around it.
For example, a leaf might have a colder temperature than the air around it.
When this happens, the vapor forms solid ice crystals immediately.
It skips the liquid step entirely and forms a solid ice crystal.
Hoarfrost uses interlocking ice crystals in its formation.
It also tends to form on things that have a small diameter.
As such, it’s common to find hoarfrost form on plant stems, leaves, poles, and wires.
4. Graupel
The final type of ice crystal formation is graupel.
Also called snow pellets, this type of ice crystal takes the shape of a small, rounded flake.
It’s sometimes mistaken for hail but it’s a lot softer and crumblier than hail.
You can pick the pellet up and squish it between your fingers.
Graupel forms when water passes through a freezing cloud.
The water turns into lumpy ice crystals which continue to fall to the ground.
This type of ice crystal is usually small but quite dense.
Where Should You Build A Snowman?
If you have the right snow conditions, then you may be ready to build your snowman.
The next question is where is the best place to build a snowman?
Here are a few things to keep in mind when choosing a spot to build your snowman.
1. Avoid Sidewalks And Driveways
The last thing you want is for your snowman to fall prey to a snow shovel or snowblower.
To avoid this, you’ll want to avoid building the snowman on any sidewalks or driveways.
In most cities, sidewalks have to be clear for pedestrians to use.
While the city sometimes clears them on its own, most residential sidewalks are reliant on homeowners to clean off their respective sidewalks.
In fact, some cities have laws indicating how soon after snowfall its residents should clear their sidewalks.
Because it’s a law, if your snowman is sitting on a sidewalk, then it’s going down.
The individual has no choice but to remove it to clear the sidewalk for pedestrians.
Sidewalks need to be clear of snow to allow people to use them.
Without clear sidewalks, they have to walk on the side of the road instead, which is dangerous, especially in the winter.
You should also avoid building your snowman on a driveway.
While it may look adorable initially, someone is going to need to use that driveway eventually.
Depending on its location, the plow might be able to avoid it, but the snowdrift it creates is going to block it from view, anyway.
As more snow falls, the bigger the snowdrift will become.
Over time, you may not even see your snowman anymore.
If you want your snowman to avoid the plow, then you shouldn’t build it on a sidewalk or driveway.
2. Avoid Sides Of The Road
Another place where you shouldn’t build your snowman is the side of the road.
While having a family of snowmen waving at passing cars may seem cute, they won’t live long.
If you live on a road that gets plowed by the city, then you can expect your snowmen to either become destroyed or to go missing.
Snowplows have to drive close to the edge of the street to push snow to the sides.
This allows cars to have plenty of space to drive on the road.
The problem is that the snow ends up forming huge snowdrifts on the sides of the road.
Sometimes, if the drift has ice in it, it can be extremely heavy and dangerous as it is flung to the side.
Your snowmen family might get hit by that debris and fall apart.
If it doesn’t, then you may find that they’re no longer visible.
They’re buried in the snowdrift.
The problem becomes even worse with each snowfall.
Whenever there are new batches of snow, you can count on the snowplow to make its rounds and either destroy or bury your snow family even more.
To keep your snowmen alive, you shouldn’t build them next to the road.
3. Direct Sunlight
Snowmen do not like the sun.
Even in winter, the sun has some warmth to it.
As a result, exposure to direct sunlight can slowly start to melt your snowmen.
When deciding where to build your snowman, you should look for heavily shaded areas.
You don’t want to build directly under any trees because there’s a chance that snow can fall from a branch.
The falling snow can damage your snowman.
Instead, you only want to build it in a shaded area.
Doing so will keep the snowman out of the sun and last even longer.
How To Build A Snowman
If you’ve never built a snowman before, then you may be unsure of the best strategy to use.
Here are some steps you can use to make a traditional snowman.
1. Form The Base
The most important part of the snowman is its base.
The rest of the structure depends on the foundation to be strong.
As such, you’ll want to make a big ball of snow.
You can do that by first compacting some snow in your hands.
It’s a good idea to wear waterproof gloves since the snow will likely have some moisture to it.
Then place the ball on the ground and start rolling it.
You can use your hands to scoop snow around the ball and compact it further to make a larger and larger ball.
The final size is up to you, but you’ll want to keep in mind that it needs two more balls on top of it.
The balls also decrease in size, so you want to make sure that the head is large enough for decorations.
A good general rule of thumb is that you shouldn’t be able to touch your hands together when hugging around the base.
2. Make The Torso
With the base in place, it’s time to make the torso.
You’ll follow the same steps as above.
Roll a ball together and compact it with your hands.
It’s okay if the torso is a bit longer than round.
When lifting the torso onto the base, you should lift from the bottom.
Scoop under it to avoid ripping into its torso.
If anything becomes damaged while lifting it, then you can fix it by making a ball with more snow and applying it to the damaged area.
3. Make The Head
The final step when it comes to the formation of the snowman is to make the head.
Like before, you’ll make a ball and compact it with more snow until you have a sizable head.
Stick it on top of the torso and fix any damage.
4. Add Accessories
No snowman is complete without accessories.
Basic accessories include some twigs for arms and rocks for a smile and eyes.
You can also make him fancier by putting a hat on his head or giving him a scarf around his “neck.”
You can even add a pipe to his mouth.
If you want your snowman to be unique, then you can add other fun details like lightsabers, swords, a shield, or even build a snowman dragon around him.
At this point, you’re only limited by your imagination.
Conclusion
Several types of snow come from different types of ice crystals.
One of the most common is powdery snow which forms from dry ice crystals.
Because it’s dry, powdery snow isn’t ideal for making snowmen.
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