Frost On A Windowshield

Environmental & Science Education, STEM, Earth & Space Science, Earth Systems, Nature

Ed Hessler

A University of Colorado physicist whom I knew - now deceased - used to take pictues of frost and snow patterns as he walked to his office and laboratory. He then wrote articles about the physics of the patterns and what they revealed about conditions creating the patterns as well as what influenced their development overnight..

An image from Earth Science Picture of the Day (EPOD) brought those pleasant memories to the surface. It is of melting frost on a windshield and the explanation is clear. And the crystals are shown in various states: melted, in-between and full crystals. The crystal shapes are very intricate, not having the six-sided symmetry of three-dimensional snow crystals.

Great links as well of related crystals and student links add much to the explanation.