What is Graupel? And Why Do Skiers Love It? Graupel: those soft, little hail-looking snowballs that fall from the sky during storms and make the ski conditions awesome. They’re not quite snowflakes and not quite hail pellets—so what are they? The World Atlas defines graupel as such: “Graupel, also referred to as snow pellets or soft hail, is a form of precipitation which forms when super-cooled droplets of water […] Brains WeatherBrains | May 24, 2021 0 Comments
NOAA and Communities to Map Heat Inequities in 11 states In summer 2021, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and partners will be mapping urban heat and heat inequities in cities in 11 states to help shed light on urban hot spots across the nation. NOAA wrote in a Facebook post detailing the project: “Cities are hot. And yet, even within the same city, some neighborhoods can be up […] Weather WeatherBrains | April 22, 2021 0 Comments
Denali National Park, Alaska: Muldrow Glacier Experiencing Rare Geologic Surge Event Denali National Park, Alaska – Denali’s 39-mile long Muldrow Glacier runs from Denali’s northeastern slope and eventually flows to the McKinley River. The glacier is now experiencing a geologic phenomenon known as a surge. According to the National Park Service, a glacial surge is: “…a short-lived, cyclical event where ice within a glacier advances suddenly and substantially, sometimes moving at […] Brains Dominic Gawel | April 15, 2021 0 Comments
How Mushrooms Can Eliminate Plastic Waste, Save the Bees, and Benefit Humanity Nature is unfathomably mysterious. The Earth is a living organism, and there’s so much we still don’t even know about it. Poetically, however, it may die that way, too. That is unless we put differences aside and assume the courage to actually do something about it. I know you’ve heard something along these lines before, and that last sentence probably […] Brains Martin Kuprianowicz | April 15, 2021 1 Comment
Brain Post: Why is Snow White? Snow is made of water, which appears totally clear and not as any specific color—so why is snow white? The answer to this mysterious question is simpler than you may think and has to do with the science of how we percieve it. Related: The Art & Science of Snowflakes Science tells us that snow is frozen water, or a […] Brains Martin Kuprianowicz | January 28, 2021 0 Comments
Snow Coverage on Japan’s Mount Fuji is Currently the Lowest it’s Been in 20 Years This article originally appeared on NASA Earth Observatory and was written by Adam Voiland Photos courtesy of NASA Earth Observatory Even as record snowfall has clobbered Japan’s western coast, much of the country’s eastern half has avoided major snow accumulation this winter. Notably, Mount Fuji’s iconic snow cap—which is normally visible throughout December—has been small or absent this year. The mountain peak, the […] SnowBrains | January 13, 2021 0 Comments
Brain Post: What is Lake Effect Snow, and How Does it Happen? Lake effect snow occurs when cold air moves across warmer water. Warmth & moisture rise into the air, condensing into clouds that can produce 2-3 inches of snow per hour or more. Brains SnowBrains | November 6, 2020 0 Comments
Brain Post: The Specter of a Mega-Tsunami in Alaska This article originally appeared on earthobservatory.nasa.gov While kayaking in Barry Arm fjord in June 2019, Valisa Higman, an artist-in-residence at Alaska’s Chugach National Forest, noticed some odd fractures on a cliff overlooking the fjord. Curious if the slope might be in the process of collapsing, she emailed photos (see one of them below) to her brother, Bretwood Higman. “Hig” is […] Brains SnowBrains | October 9, 2020 0 Comments
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