Hailstones are made when water in the air sticks to a falling ice crystal, and freezes. More and more water can stick to the crystal, until it finally reaches the ground. The more water freezes to it, the heavier it becomes, and the harder it falls to earth. Big hailstones hit the ground so hard that they will bounce back into the air again!
When you walk over snow, it makes a crunching or squeaking sound, and so does frost. You might notice that when you walk on it during the daytime, it makes a lower pitched crunch than it does at night, when it is colder. The colder the temperature, the higher pitched the noise is, until it becomes a nasty squeak instead of a crunch!
We haven’t had much snow this year – but there is still time!
Snowflakes have been falling and fluttering to earth for BILLIONS of years. But, as far as we know, no two have ever been exactly the same! Each flake is made up of tiny crystals, and each crystal is a perfect geometric shape. The type of shape depends on the temperature of the air, and the amount of water vapour that is in it. If the crystal is formed very high in the air, where there is not much water vapour, then it will be a simple rod or needle shape. If it is formed nearer to earth, where the air is warmer and there is more water vapour, then it will be a much more interesting shape. As the tiny
