Thundersnow

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Thundersnow is a particularly rare meteorological phenomenon that includes the typical behavior of a thunderstorm, but with snow falling as the primary precipitation instead of rain.

There are usually two forms of thundersnow:

A normal thunderstorm on the leading edge of a cold front that passes over a colder body of water (with subsequently colder air around it) which in turn maintains the precipitation as snow.
A heavy snowstorm that catches a warm draft of air which allows favorable conditions for lightning and thunder to occur.

One unique aspect of thundersnow is that the snowfall acts as an acoustic suppressor of the thunder. The thunder from a typical thunderstorm can be heard many kilometres away, while the thunder from thundersnow can usually only be heard within a two to three kilometer radius from the lightning.

Thundersnow, while rare anywhere, is more common with lake-effect snows in the Great Lakes area of the United States and Canada, the midwestern U.S., the Great Salt Lake, and has also been reported around the Sea of Japan and even around Mount Everest during expeditions. When such storms happen at ski areas, the mountain is often evacuated for safety.

Thundersnow was reported in metro Atlanta during the Great Blizzard of 1993, and in greater New York (and other areas) during the Blizzard of 2006. During a thundersnow event in late March 1997, lightning struck the main ski lift at the Angelfire Resort in Angelfire, New Mexico after closing time. This caused no injuries, but damaged the only lift providing access to and from the operating part of the mountain. Large snow pellets were also reported from this storm.

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