# Why does snow sometimes

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-snow-sometimes/45480>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [December 14, 2000, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-snow-sometimes/45480 "2000-12-14T03:40:32Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\
**Post date:** [December 14, 2000, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-snow-sometimes/45480/1 "2000-12-14T03:40:32Z")

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Noticed walking through the recent snow, how it sparkels like the gleam in a bankers eye as he contemplates the mystery of compounded interest.

But it seems that somethimes it sparkles, sometimes it simply falls down and lies there. Why? Anyone know?

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**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\
**Post date:** [December 14, 2000, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-snow-sometimes/45480/2 "2000-12-14T04:08:09Z")

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It’s mostly a matter of the size of the snowflakes reflective crystal faces. With snow needles or small flakes the faces are too small to much in the way of a specular reflection. The result is more diffuse as if off of ground glass. With larger crystal planes, you start to get reflections of images rather than diffusion.  
A field of big snowflakes under a clear dark sky and a full moon can be quite stunning to walk over !

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**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\
**Post date:** [December 14, 2000, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-snow-sometimes/45480/3 "2000-12-14T13:25:16Z")

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Aha! Under what conditions do these flakes form as compared with the boring kind?