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❄️ How does snow form?

Ice grows from vapor in cold clouds, hex lattices sculpt flakes, and storms supply the lift.

lessons

~10 min

to learn

🔬 Science

subject

Adults

level

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What you’ll learn

From vapor to ice crystalExplain snow as ice crystal growth from vapor, not merely frozen rain.Supersaturation, ice nuclei, and deposition build crystals in cold clouds before flakes fall.
Why snowflakes look hexagonalLink hexagonal lattice, habit diagrams, and aggregation.Ice structure sets six-fold symmetry; temperature paths sculpt shapes; clumps become soft flakes.
Storms, lake effect, and climate contextConnect lift, rain–snow lines, and snowpack as water storage.Storms and lake-effect bands supply ingredients. Profiles set precipitation type. Snowpack is a seasonal reservoir.

Questions this course answers

What is the best description of how most snow forms?

Snow is primarily ice grown by vapor deposition (and aggregation), not simply raindrops that froze midair.

Match each winter particle to a formation idea

Different temperature paths produce different hydrometeors; hexagonal shape tracks ice structure.

Why can one side of a city get snow while the other gets rain in the same storm?

Melting layers aloft and cold layers near the ground vary spatially, so precipitation type changes across short distances.

Grounded in trusted sources

NOAA National Weather Service education on snow, sleet, and freezing rain
NASA Earth science / cloud microphysics public explainers on ice crystal growth
American Meteorological Society glossary and education resources on ice habits
USGS / mountain water-supply education on snowpack and snow water equivalent

Every Wunder lesson is built from real, reputable sources — never invented.

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