What time of the year do storms occur?
The images are from the National Weather Service.
The world looks white because snow is blowing faster than highway speed limits.Second graders can't see the snow because it's so deep.The wind and snow can cause problems.You can expect that from a storm.
A blizzard is a storm with large amounts of snow or blowing snow, winds greater than 35 mph (56 kph), and visibility of less than 14 mile (0.4 km) for at least three hours.There are some ground blizzards that do not have falling snow.Instead, snow that had fallen before the storm is blown around and creates these conditions.
On the northwest side of a powerful storm system, there is usually a build up of bluster.There is a difference in pressure between the low pressure of the storm and the high pressure beyond it that leads to strong winds.
The conditions during a storm can be very bad.The sky and ground look white when the blowing snow causes whiteout conditions.The roads can be partially or completely blocked by snowdrifts.The cold temperatures that can cause frostbite can last for days after the storm has ended.
In the United States, the upper Midwest and the Great Plains are home to a lot of blizzards.Even in the tropics, where it is cold on high altitude mountaintops, there can be storms.
1.In order for snow to fall to the ground, the temperature must be cold both up in the clouds and down at ground level.The snow will melt on its way down if the air is too warm.
2.It's necessary to form clouds and precipitation.Water is in the air.Water Vapor can be obtained by blowing air across a body of water.Some water is put into the air by the wind as it moves air over the water.Lake effect snowstorms and nor' easters pick up a lot of precipitation.Cold air can't hold a lot of water.Very cold air doesn't make a lot of snow.
3.Over very cold air, moist air needs to rise to make clouds and snow.There are two ways that moist air can rise.Warm, moist air is brought to the poles from the equator by winds.A front is formed when warm air and cold air come together.As warm air rises up a mountainside, it can form clouds and snow.