Winter Magic …. things that only happen in REALLY COLD temperatures!

The other week Fairbanks had temps in the -40’s! There were pockets that reached -53. Fairbanks hasn’t seen temps this cold in a number of years. Of course it would be my luck that this winter returned to “the way it was in the old days”. To me, it is extraordinary that people continue to function, go out, go shopping, drive cars, go to school and do “normal” things. That’s right – they don’t cancel school for those cold temperatures…. it’s business as usual unless the buses are too cold to run. My mentality is to hole up in these temps… and truthfully many people do.

Of course it also seems like bragging rights to say “I was out walking in -40!” But let me say – it is COLD. Your face tingles, your lungs feel it.

Here is some unique “winter magic” to experience when it gets really cold:

Ice Fog! This makes driving un-enjoyable and dangerous to boot! It is what it sounds like. Fog that is formed from ice crystals! It turns out that water droplets suspended in the air can stay liquid down to -40 F. At that point they freeze and yup – you get ice fog! For those of you who like the real life experience here is a video of driving in it.

https://goo.gl/photos/je3JBLPfRojGxpfr5

Bubbles Freeze! They pop and the frozen skins wrinkle. It looks like small fireworks.  If a bubble is lucky enough to freeze instead of burst, it gets a frosty sheen before landing on the snow. I’ve heard you can pick them up but we didn’t have any luck.

Boiling water turns to snow!  I’ve heard about this and guess what – It’s TRUE!  When the mercury dropped I had to try it. It’s wild. When we threw it off the deck it made a curtain of white. It’s instant and makes a fizzing noise. The white isn’t actually snow but frozen water vapor. Here is a cool video I took. Warning – apparently I didn’t stop recording between takes so the middle is a little dizzying.

https://goo.gl/photos/itWFag3GLQTrEYLu6

Want to know more about the science of this boiling water “magic” check out this website: http://www.livescience.com/32951-how-can-boiling-water-turn-snow.html