Hey Ray! Can It Be Too Cold To Snow?

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- You don't have to tell us that it gets cold and snowy here in the winter, but can it actually get too cold to have snow? It is a question I get asked a lot in the winter, so can temperatures reach a point where snow can no longer form? The quick and technical answer is "no", but there is some truth to that notion.

Scientifically and technically, the only temperature where it would be too cold for snow is absolute zero.

Absolute zero is -459.67° Fahrenheit and is the lowest temperature that is theoretically possible. Any real gas condenses to a liquid or a solid at some temperature higher than absolute zero, so hitting it would be too cold for snow! Getting a temperature to absolute zero is impossible though, meaning it still can't be too cold for it to snow. At least technically.

Here is where I find that idea to be on the right path. We know that colder air has less moisture. The colder the air gets, the less moisture content that air can hold. Less moisture means less snow.

On Earth, According to the Australian Antarctic Program ( https://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-antarctica/geography-and-geology/ ) , Antarctica is the coldest and driest place on Earth, and the amount of precipitation they see on the Polar Plateau is similar to what falls in the world's hottest deserts. A prime example of colder air holding less moisture, which means there is less moisture for snow production!

Let's look at it this way: As long as there is moisture in the air it can snow, but the colder it gets, the less snow there will be. While that idea is technically wrong, in real world weather it has some truth.