Production of artificial snow crystals using charged thin hairs in a thermos containing a mixture of salt and ice

Artificial snow crystals have been produced on thin synthetic fibers in a thermos containing a freezing mixture of salt and crushed ice. In advance, the fibers were charged up by static electricity and the charged fibers were put in a small plastic vessel, which was placed on a freezing Mixture in the thermos. Water vapor was supplied by diffusion from slightly wetted paper placed at the top of the thermos. Several minutes later, artificial snow crystals appeared on the fibers. It was also demonstrated that snow crystals with very good symmetry are produced using dandelion hairs that extend near vertical plane in the vessel. It was proved that the seeds of nuclear of snow crystals are produced at charged up thorns on the hairs. (c) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.