Completely off-topic help needed :)

One of my 8 year old son's class assignment questions reads, "How can
you look at the clouds and know if it is about to snow?". Never having
seen snow, I hadn't the foggiest idea. Asked a few friends and none
knows either! A quick search on the internet but came up blank,
probably because I haven't given the keywords that might elicit the
correct answer. Wonder who here (Dubai, UAE) came up with such an
irrelevant question!

Any Canadians here who can help? Or anyone near Chicago (snows there,
right?)?

Thanks much in advance and apologies to the rest,

Ramapriya

You Can't tell by looking at the clouds......come on


On Nov 14, 10:16 am, wrote:
One of my 8 year old son's class assignment questions reads, "How can
you look at the clouds and know if it is about to snow?". Never having
seen snow, I hadn't the foggiest idea. Asked a few friends and none
knows either! A quick search on the internet but came up blank,
probably because I haven't given the keywords that might elicit the
correct answer. Wonder who here (Dubai, UAE) came up with such an
irrelevant question!

Any Canadians here who can help? Or anyone near Chicago (snows there,
right?)?

Thanks much in advance and apologies to the rest,

Ramapriya

joe wrote:
You Can't tell by looking at the clouds......come on



You definitely get some clues from the clouds. Every time I've ever seen it
snow, it's been cold but not too cold (right at freezing but not too much below
or above) and there has been a low heavy looking stratus layer of clouds. They
look relatively dark, indicating there's a lot of moisture and the cloud layer
is fairly deep. Now, when I see these conditions, it doesn't necessarily snow.
But every time I've seen it snow, I see those conditions.



--
Mortimer Schnerd, RN
mschnerdatcarolina.rr.com

Recently, posted:

One of my 8 year old son's class assignment questions reads, "How can
you look at the clouds and know if it is about to snow?". Never having
seen snow, I hadn't the foggiest idea. Asked a few friends and none
knows either! A quick search on the internet but came up blank,
probably because I haven't given the keywords that might elicit the
correct answer. Wonder who here (Dubai, UAE) came up with such an
irrelevant question!

Any Canadians here who can help? Or anyone near Chicago (snows there,
right?)?

Thanks much in advance and apologies to the rest,

If you look at the clouds and it looks like it will rain, but the
temperatures are below 32° F, it will most likely snow...

Neil

joe wrote:
You Can't tell by looking at the clouds......come on

Another vote for that - I'd also like to know whether
the substance just now coming is water or snow (and
it's perfectly normal at this time of the year here
in the far North, Helsinki, Finland, 60 deg N).

--

Tauno Voipio
tauno voipio (at) iki fi


On Nov 14, 10:16 am, wrote:

One of my 8 year old son's class assignment questions reads, "How can
you look at the clouds and know if it is about to snow?". Never having
seen snow, I hadn't the foggiest idea. Asked a few friends and none
knows either! A quick search on the internet but came up blank,
probably because I haven't given the keywords that might elicit the
correct answer. Wonder who here (Dubai, UAE) came up with such an
irrelevant question!

Any Canadians here who can help? Or anyone near Chicago (snows there,
right?)?

Thanks much in advance and apologies to the rest,

Ramapriya

Tauno Voipio wrote:
joe wrote:
You Can't tell by looking at the clouds......come on

Another vote for that - I'd also like to know whether the substance just now coming is water or
snow (and it's perfectly normal at this time of the year here in the far North, Helsinki, Finland,
60 deg N).


Think I'll give him Neil's answer because it looks nice and logical
too. I remember similar Qs at school regarding impending heavy rainfall
and answering, "Dark, low clouds". I wondered if snow meant clouds
being pure white, which apparently is not!

And what do u mean you can't tell whether what's falling is rain or
snow?

Ramapriya

wrote:
One of my 8 year old son's class assignment questions reads, "How can
you look at the clouds and know if it is about to snow?". Never having
seen snow, I hadn't the foggiest idea. Asked a few friends and none
knows either! A quick search on the internet but came up blank,
probably because I haven't given the keywords that might elicit the
correct answer. Wonder who here (Dubai, UAE) came up with such an
irrelevant question!

Any Canadians here who can help? Or anyone near Chicago (snows there,
right?)?

I'm from California but wouldn't the cloud be full of snow if its
getting ready to snow? Can you see the snow in the cloud?

-Robert

wrote:
Tauno Voipio wrote:

joe wrote:

You Can't tell by looking at the clouds......come on

Another vote for that - I'd also like to know whether the substance just now coming is water or
snow (and it's perfectly normal at this time of the year here in the far North, Helsinki, Finland,
60 deg N).



Think I'll give him Neil's answer because it looks nice and logical
too. I remember similar Qs at school regarding impending heavy rainfall
and answering, "Dark, low clouds". I wondered if snow meant clouds
being pure white, which apparently is not!

And what do u mean you can't tell whether what's falling is rain or
snow?

When the temperature is at zero C, there is a snowfall
with the snow crystals wet with water, so the material
coming nearly horizontally and chilling your face is
both snow and rain (slush?). Of course, there is an own
word in the local language for it, though we do not have
as many different words for different kinds of snow as
in the Eskimo languages.

Could the question contain the idea that the rain falling
is only cold enough when it is coming from a CB or TCU?

--

Tauno Voipio
tauno voipio (at) iki fi

Tauno Voipio wrote:

When the temperature is at zero C, there is a snowfall with the snow crystals
wet with water, so the material coming nearly horizontally and chilling your face is
both snow and rain (slush?). Of course, there is an own word in the local language for it,


Wonder if it's sleet you're talking of? I haven't seen that either

Ramapriya

Most rain begins as frozen water, at high altitudes. Then
the snow or sleet melts on the way down into warmer air. In
your dry desert air, you get virga, which is falling water
evaporating in the lower, dry air.

The amount of water available for precipitation can be
judged by the density [darkness] of the cloud. But it can
snow from clear air, as water vapor sublimates directly to
crystal form.

http://www.airweb.faa.gov/Regulatory...A?OpenDocument

This link is to AC 00-6, in several PDF files, it has many
answers.



wrote in message
ups.com...
| Tauno Voipio wrote:
| joe wrote:
| You Can't tell by looking at the clouds......come on
|
| Another vote for that - I'd also like to know whether
the substance just now coming is water or
| snow (and it's perfectly normal at this time of the year
here in the far North, Helsinki, Finland,
| 60 deg N).
|
|
| Think I'll give him Neil's answer because it looks nice
and logical
| too. I remember similar Qs at school regarding impending
heavy rainfall
| and answering, "Dark, low clouds". I wondered if snow
meant clouds
| being pure white, which apparently is not!
|
| And what do u mean you can't tell whether what's falling
is rain or
| snow?
|
| Ramapriya
|