Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
Make a sustaining gift today to support local journalism!

Video: Making Snowflakes In Slo-Mo

I know, I know. Some of you are sick of it.

As another winter storm finishes crashing through the northern parts of the nation — and a few more are supposed to be headed our way — many of you may feel you're done with snow.

We here at 13.7: Cosmos & Culture, however, feel its our duty to constantly remind you that the world you live in is awesomely beautiful and weird and worth paying really close attention to. So, with that mission in mind, we give you this beautiful 2-minute video of water turning into snowflakes (I first found it at The Kid Should See This).

Now I could regale you with the physics of six-fold rotational symmetries and hexagonal structures forming from oxygen atoms and their bonded hydrogen pairs. But I'm gonna leave that to this article about the physics of snowflakes or this video that we showcased last year when the snow was falling heavy.

So, watch and enjoy.

May these two minutes remind you that there is a lot more going on than our worries and concerns. That's the story snowflakes are trying to tell you.


Adam Frank is a co-founder of the 13.7 blog, an astrophysics professor at the University of Rochester, a book author and a self-described "evangelist of science." You can keep up with more of what Adam is thinking on Facebook and Twitter: @adamfrank4

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Adam Frank was a contributor to the NPR blog 13.7: Cosmos & Culture. A professor at the University of Rochester, Frank is a theoretical/computational astrophysicist and currently heads a research group developing supercomputer code to study the formation and death of stars. Frank's research has also explored the evolution of newly born planets and the structure of clouds in the interstellar medium. Recently, he has begun work in the fields of astrobiology and network theory/data science. Frank also holds a joint appointment at the Laboratory for Laser Energetics, a Department of Energy fusion lab.

You make NHPR possible.

NHPR is nonprofit and independent. We rely on readers like you to support the local, national, and international coverage on this website. Your support makes this news available to everyone.

Give today. A monthly donation of $5 makes a real difference.