I have spent a lot of time in the snow and though I at least knew some basic facts about the stuff. But as it turns out, snow isn’t even really white in color, so I guess I don’t know much about snow and have been played this whole time. According to the National Snow and Ice Data Center,
“the complex structure of snow crystals results in countless tiny surfaces from which visible light is efficiently reflected. What little sunlight is absorbed by snow is absorbed uniformly over the wavelengths of visible light thus giving snow its white appearance.”
This is complicated science talk saying that snow is colorless and just appears to be white. I guess we learn something new every day.
One more snow fact, to keep you all prepared for holiday dinner parties. Somebody has to be the most interesting person at the party, and now we are all one step closer.
Anyway, the place that has had the most measured snowfall in one season is Mount Baker, WA. During the 1998-99 season, Mt. Baker received 1,140 inches (95 feet/29 meters) of snow.
