Industry News
Winter ski conditions are now more unpredictable than ever before. Resorts are looking for new ways to ensure they can open as much terrain as possible, even when deliveries from Mother Nature are lacking. This is particularly important during the early season, when in certain years — last winter across the American West, for example — natural snowfall seriously under delivers.
One common tactic used to combat subpar snowfall is snowmaking. The technology, first used by ski resorts in the mid-1950s, involves spraying ultra-fine droplets of water into the air, which, given their size, freeze immediately and drop to the ground as a snow-like substance. While snowmaking is incredibly widespread today, having been adopted by nearly every major ski resort in the world, it does have a couple of significant drawbacks.
First and foremost, snowmaking uses a lot of energy and water. The president of MyNeige, a company that designs and manufactures snowgun equipment, stated: “In the early months, October to January, 67% of all the energy going to a ski area is consumed by the snowmaking.” This energy inefficiency is harmful for both the climate and resorts’ bottom lines, as the production costs of making artificial snow alone can reach $1 million annually for large resorts. Additionally, snowmaking uses huge amounts of water. Covering just three acres of terrain requires snowguns to use over 600,000 gallons of water, enough to fill an Olympic-sized swimming pool.
Snowmaking is also not reliable in all conditions. Because snowguns shoot water pellets into the air, they rely on an outside temperature cold enough to freeze the droplets before they fall onto the slopes below. If the temperature is too high — roughly above freezing — snowmaking becomes almost completely ineffective. This is troubling for resorts, since during the early season, when artificial snow is most needed, temperatures can fluctuate dramatically and remain above freezing for prolonged periods.
Given the limitations of artificial snowmaking, ski resorts are looking for new ways to ensure skiing and riding for visitors during times of snow uncertainty. One increasingly popular solution is snow farming. Snow farming, or snow storage, was pioneered in Ruka, Finland, during the 1990s, and has since been adopted by a number of European and, more recently, North American ski resorts. The practice entails setting aside a large quantity of snow from the previous winter to be stored through the summer months and used at the onset of the next ski season.
Modern snow farming preserves snow through the summer by covering it in 2.5-inch-thick white polystyrene panels. The material, which has proven incredibly effective, serves to both reflect sunlight and insulate snow from warm temperatures. Studies have shown that even in locations with particularly hot summer climates, modern snow farming consistently saves around 80% of farmed snow for use during the subsequent winter season.
Ski resorts in the United States are now taking note of this potentially revolutionary technology. Last year, Bogus Basin became the first American mountain to successfully implement large-scale snow farming, storing enough snow through the summer to open a large swath of terrain early in November 2025. This summer, on the heels of what was quite possibly the American West’s worst snow season ever, other resorts in the region are testing out this new method of preserving snow.
Aspen Snowmass recently adopted Snow Secure technology, which will allow it to store roughly 3.5 million gallons of snow-water equivalent. The pilot program, meant to test the feasibility of snow farming on the mountain, is proving successful so far. Even during a recent heat wave that spiked ambient temperatures to 100°F, the farmed snow remained cool, never rising above 32.6°F. Aspen hopes to retain 80% of its snow for use during the fall and early winter, and could dramatically expand its snow farming capacity depending on the success of this year’s preliminary project.
Other resorts around the country and continent are pursuing similar experiments. Snow Secure has thus far completed 20 successful installations in North America. Additionally, its first three pilot programs from last year have all expanded capacity for the upcoming winter.
While it is unlikely that snow farming will completely eliminate the need for artificial snowmaking, it could prove another useful tool in resorts’ arsenals as they seek to hedge their bets against unpredictable snow. As the 2025-26 winter highlighted, ski areas are in need now more than ever of ways to remain operational even when Mother Nature doesn’t deliver. If snow farming technology continues to prove successful, it could meaningfully increase climate resilience at ski resorts around the world while decreasing their reliance on less sustainable practices such as artificial snowmaking.
