What Is Thundersnow And Where Will It Hit In The UK?

It's a pretty rare phenomenon.
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Thundersnow is a term you’ll be hearing a lot of in the winter months, but aside from sounding pretty damn cool, what exactly is it?

Well it kind of does what it says on the tin, in that it’s a thunderstorm with snow rather than rain.

A rare weather phenomenon, it is caused in the same way thunder and lightning are triggered during the warmer months, when a pocket of warm air at ground level rises and collides with the colder air above it.

Even if temperatures are freezing or in the minus figures, the air above it is significantly cooler. In the summer months, this process creates heavy rain showers and lightning storms.

In the cooler winter months, the country is pelted with snow instead.

The latest shows that some have seen #thundersnow overnight. Further #snow is likely today so stay tuned to the forecasts #weatheraware pic.twitter.com/FsJ6Ha7tS3

— Met Office (@metoffice) January 12, 2017

The snow contained within the thunderstorm acts to dampen the sound of the thunder and while the thunder for a typical storm might be heard many miles away, the thunder during a thundersnow event will only be heard if a person is within two or three miles of the lightning.

When thundersnow occurs at night, the lightning appears brighter – a consequence of it reflecting off the snowflakes.

Did you know? #Snow forms when the air temperature is below 2 °C. It’s a myth that it needs to be below zero to snow pic.twitter.com/EZaioBCssZ

— Met Office (@metoffice) January 11, 2017

And while not everyone in Britain appears to be taking the warnings entirely seriously...

Incredible scenes of devastation.
DAMN YOU THUNDERSNOW!!! pic.twitter.com/MEQfWL3jAi

— joe heenan (@joeheenan) January 12, 2017

Wait, did someone say 'THUNDERSNOW'? This is getting out of control... #snow pic.twitter.com/Ut2iyygZCd

— Channel 4 (@Channel4) January 12, 2017

Preparing myself for thundersnow envy (it's in the dictionary, together with the wonderful thunderplump: a stormy downpour of fat rain).

— Susie Dent (@susie_dent) January 12, 2017

#MaxintheLakes is back. He's reading "Flapometers at Force 8" as he waits for #snow in #Cumbria. #thundersnow #weather #dog #LakeDistrict pic.twitter.com/EJWEfjm1Xy

— FionaMarleyPaterson (@fmarleypaterson) January 12, 2017

The clue was not in the title for me - I had to google!! #thundersnow pic.twitter.com/Ip35aXb2RD

— Nic (@Nikki_x23x) January 11, 2017

Social media just can’t get enough of it...

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