Thursday 5 March 2009

Coastal Snow


It’s snowing again in Swanage! Just tried to get to work and it took 45 minutes to get to Corfe Castle (5 miles) to find an accident blocking the road – I gave up and turned around as I didn’t fancy my chances of getting to Wimborne.

On the radio they said it was ‘Coastal Snow’; I didn’t know that was an official type of snow, I just know big snow and little snow….although I hear Eskimos have 45 different words for snow.

Wikipedia says (so it must be true!) that it's an urban myth about Eskmos having so many words, but then goes on to say:-

“One thesaurus, ..... includes black frost, corn snow,
crystal, driven snow, firn, flake, frost line, frost smoke, granular snow, graupel, hailstone, hailstorm, hard frost, hoar, ice needle, iceshockle, igloo, killing frost, mantle of snow, mogul, névé (not neve), powder, rime frost, sharp frost, slosh, snow banner, snow bed, snow blanket, snow blast, snowbridge (distinct from a human-made avalanche snow bridge), snow-crystal, snow dust, snowfield, snow flurry, snowhouse, snow ice, snowland, snow line, snowpack, snow pellets, snowscape, snowslide, snowslip, snow squall, snow slush, snow wreath, soft hail, spring corn, spring snow, tapioca snow, wet snow, white frost and yellow snow"

But, ‘Coastal Snow’ is not there, ...so I think the man on the radio just made it up!

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