Here's the scoop: A little lesson in science explains why snow is white
There are few sights more beautiful than a fresh blanket of sparkling snow clinging to branches and glistening in the sunlight.
As 5-year-old Ariel played at Bison's Bluff Playground at the Spring Valley Nature Center, she wondered why snow is always white.
Ariel thought other colors, particularly purple, would be "really pretty." Unfortunately for Ariel, the chances of purple snow are rather unlikely without a little human intervention, so here's the scoop on why snow is white.
It all begins with a quick lesson in light and reflection. Light is made up of a whole bunch of colors, which is why rainbows are so colorful. Most objects absorb the colors in light, except for the color you see. If you're looking at grass, the grass is absorbing the light's colors and only reflecting back the green.
But unlike snow, most objects are not comprised of ice crystals. Snow is unique. The light moves through it, reflecting off the ice crystals and back to us, with nothing in the snow that can absorb, or soak up, any of the colors. Therefore, it appears white.
The same thing happens if you make a pile of salt, sugar, or even crushed glass. Each little granule by itself is clear, but just like snowflakes, if you put them together, they appear white. Like snow, the salt, sugar and crushed glass don't absorb the light and, therefore, don't absorb the light's colors.
Where do snowflakes begin? Invisible water vapor in the air condenses to become tiny droplets that merge together to form clouds. They are light enough to float because cloud droplets are way tinier than raindrops. They are even tinier than a human hair.
When the weather gets cold, the droplets freeze and grow into snowflakes. They fall to Earth, reflecting the colors of light and making everything white as, well, snow.
• Sources: weathernationtv.com and "The Secret Life of a Snowflake" by Kenneth Libbrecht
Did You Know?
• Every snowflake has six branches. They may be shaped differently - some like stars, flowers, or even needles - but there are always six branches.
• It takes about 100,000 cloud droplets to make a single snowflake.
• Japan is the snowiest place on Earth.