Night snow or Day snow

[Cold Rain]

Both can provide interesting and unique experiences.

Griteater said this, but one of the things I love about nighttime snow is walking outside and standing beneath the glow of a lone streetlight -- one of those orangish ones -- and watching the wind-driven flakes fly here and there...slowing down, speeding up, changing direction, falling slower then faster as the wind changes.  Then, you look down at the ground and watch the snow as it sparkles and glistens under the soft orange light and see the footprints you just made showing the first hints of being covered up with new snow.  It's cold and you feel the sting of the snowflakes on your face, so you either walk head-down or turn your back to the wind.  There's something peaceful about a nighttime snow.

During the daytime, there's nothing like the anticipation of waiting for the first flakes to drift down from the gray sky.  I love watching the sky transform from defined cloud edges into into a uniform, diffuse, almost soft gray blanket as the snow begins to make its way to the ground.  It's amazing to look up and see the air filled with a million snowflakes and watch their random and erratic journey toward the earth.  It's fun to watch the snow accumulate and to watch your tracks fade away as if nobody had ever stepped there before.  It's fun to watch the house across the street become blotted out by heavy snow and listen as the snow falls quietly but distinctly through the trees and onto the ground.

It's honestly hard for me to pick.  There's something special, something beautiful and peaceful about a long and steady snowfall, no matter what the hour it decides to fall.  I love snow.

[Lettucesnow]

22 hours ago, CAD_Wedge_NC said:

Do I have to pick one? ...... There is an argument for both..... Night snow accumulates easier and day snow allows you better viewing. I guess I will go with day snow for now.

My thoughts, almost exactly!!  I've pretty much always been in the camp that it is better to receive our good snowstorms/ice storms in the hours of darkness between sunset and sunrise here in the south to help with accumulations; lets face it, surface and ground temperatures somehow always end up being an issue, even here in the mountain valley's like Asheville. However it's always easier/more enjoyable to watch the accumulations pile up during the day when you can see the effects better! The good storm we enjoyed in early December was pretty cool; snow began around 7am here in Asheville and continued in some capacity for ~30 hours, I believe!! We were lucky enough to get the best of both worlds, but even with 10"+ and multiple hours of snowfall in the darkness, it still had a difficult time accumulating on the warm road surfaces.  

[Lettucesnow]

2 hours ago, Cold Rain said:

Griteater said this, but one of the things I love about nighttime snow is walking outside and standing beneath the glow of a lone streetlight -- one of those orangish ones -- and watching the wind-driven flakes fly here and there...slowing down, speeding up, changing direction, falling slower then faster as the wind changes.  Then, you look down at the ground and watch the snow as it sparkles and glistens under the soft orange light and see the footprints you just made showing the first hints of being covered up with new snow.  It's cold and you feel the sting of the snowflakes on your face, so you either walk head-down or turn your back to the wind.  There's something peaceful about a nighttime snow.

It's honestly hard for me to pick.  There's something special, something beautiful and peaceful about a long and steady snowfall, no matter what the hour it decides to fall.  I love snow.

Man, you said it!! There truly is something indescribable, at least for me, about being in the throws of a great snowstorm at 3am, walking in the street lights or just plain darkness, all by yourself. It is one of the most peaceful and exhilarating weather experiences, with the cold wind whipping your face!! 

[yotaman]

23 hours ago, Cold Rain said:

60/40 Day/Night Snow

This would be pretty much ideal:

On December 30, after an extended period of below normal temperatures, a strong cold front moved through the area during the early morning hours, ushering in an unusually intense Arctic air mass.  Increasing high and mid-level cloudiness blotted out the sunlight, and temperatures fell into the 20s throughout the day.  Strong cold air advection overwhelmed the region, courtesy of an anomalous high pressure, exceeding 1050 mb, centered over the upper Midwest.  By late afternoon, a vigorous upper level disturbance dropping southeast began to interact with energy in the southern branch of the jet stream over the northeastern Gulf of Mexico, along the stalled frontal boundary.  Precipitation began to quickly break out and intensify over southern Alabama, Georgia, and northern Florida.

By early evening, an area of low pressure began to form off of the northern Florida coastline and rapidly intensify, as the two disturbances merged.  By midnight, heavy snow was falling along a line from Montgomery, to Macon, to Columbia, and northeast to Wilmington, with light snow reported as far north as Asheville over to Raleigh and New Bern.  Rapid cyclogenesis was well underway during the pre-dawn hours of the 31st, as the pressure decreased from 996 mb to 984 mb by 6 AM.  As the storm system crawled slowly north-northeast, it continued to intensify, and conditions continued to deteriorate.  Heavy snow spread northward into Atlanta, Greensboro, Raleigh, and Norfolk, with temperatures reported in the mid-teens across much of the area.

By midday on December 31, the storm system was located just southeast of Myrtle Beach, and the pressure had dropped to 968 mb, prompting the National Weather Service to issue rare blizzard warnings from northern and eastern sections of South Carolina, up through the Piedmont and coastal plain of North Carolina and into eastern sections of Virginia and into the mid-Atlantic.  As the afternoon progressed, wind gusts as high as 55 MPH were reported as far inland as Florence and up through Raleigh-Durham and were accompanied by 2-4" inch/hour snowfall rates, producing whiteout conditions.

The system continued to deepen through the night and move slowly north-northeast, compliments of a strong blocking ridge centered over Greenland, stretching back into eastern Canada.  Heavy snow continued over much of North and South Carolina, up through Virginia and into the eastern mid-Atlantic during the overnight hours of the 31st, as the storm moved over Cape Hatteras.  By dawn, light snow lingered over northern South Carolina and western North Carolina, while moderate snow and gusty winds continued through the Piedmont and coastal plain of North Carolina and central Virginia.  Heavy snow was reported over eastern Virginia and farther north into the mid-Atlantic.

As the storm departed the area on 1/1, light snow continued to fall over central and eastern sections of North Carolina and Virginia as temperatures fell into the single digits.  Over the next two days, a pair of upper level disturbances brought cloudy skies and periods of light snow and flurries across upper sections of the Southeast, along with reinforcing shots of Arctic air.

All told, this would be recorded as one of the most intense and widespread winter storms over many areas of the Southeast, dating back to the early 1800s.  Daily and storm total snowfall records were set, with many locations receiving 24-36" of snowfall, with drifts as high as 10-12'.  All-time record low temperatures would be recorded, as widespread below zero readings were reported.  The apex of the storm saw the pressure sink to 954 mb, producing extremely heavy snowfall and high winds, as temperatures well into the teens extended throughout much of the Southeast.  It would prove to be a storm that would be remembered for a generation.

Ohhhhh, my dream storm except in needs to happen in February this year.

[november rain]

The answer for me is somewhat reflected within this song....  

 

[tonysc]

8 hours ago, drfranklin said:

what? who the heck likes night snow? I'm sleeping BTW - day snow all the way - absolutely beautiful

now, night SLEET - MUCH better at night - lulls me into a sleep LOL

I'm with you 100% on that man.

[Iceagewhereartthou]

Hmmmm, this is like being asked to choose between 1 million dollars in cash, or 1 million in gold.... JUST GIVE IT TO ME!!!

 

[Met1985]

I go night snow on the fact that unless the ground is frozen you get much better snow growth and the ground is already cold at night so you get max accumulation without the sun's rays eating away at accumulation. 

[StoneColdWeatherAustin]

Depends. From a weather standpoint, I like snow at night when temps are normally the lowest. It's also fun to see some falling, but from a father standpoint, this past storm killed me, because it snowed pretty hard all day, and I try to wait for it to end to let the kids go play, and it just kept snowing! They were about to go postal.

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[jburns]

1 hour ago, StoneColdWeatherAustin said:

Depends. From a weather standpoint, I like snow at night when temps are normally the lowest. It's also fun to see some falling, but from a father standpoint, this past storm killed me, because it snowed pretty hard all day, and I try to wait for it to end to let the kids go play, and it just kept snowing! They were about to go postal.

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1

That's cruel.  Bundle them up and send them outside.  A trick from my northern childhood. When they first go out make sure they do not sit or lie down in the snow until their outer garment has a chance to cool to the ambient temperature. If they drop down into the snow too fast, like kids are want to do, the warm cloth melts just enough snow to make them wet and cold.

[CummingGaSnow]

Night snow. When you live this far south, temps are ALWAYS very marginal for accumulation (night or day) so the last thing I need is the sun chipping away at any dear sweet accumulation I can muster. IF it was cold enough with good ratios then I'd be all for a day snow. But, I'm being realistic.