Snow Through the Grapevine

I heard from a little birdy that there is a question awaiting my answer. Ah yes, my lovely...I hear you.

Snow. I love snow for a very short period of time. About 15 minutes. After it has stuck to the ground and turns to slush and muck and is filthy, I am not such a big fan anymore.

Jean has asked me about snow. She wants to know why, when she is all snuggly and cozy inside with the warm winter sunshine (which is horribly rare here in Michigan) that the snow doesn't melt outside. Wisconsin has a great deal more sunshine than we do, they being on the other side of the lake. However they also retain a great deal more snow than we do.

Yep...it's all about the distance of the sun. This photo from Wikipedia makes it a big more easy to understand. Our upper portion of the equator faces the sun when we have summer. But during the winter, we are facing away the entire time. This is also why Australia is in their summer right now. Mel Gibson and Nicole Kidman lying on the beach, etc.

Therefore, we still see the sun just the same (when there are no clouds...) and can feel its warmth through our windows (since the cold air is not blowing on us at the time) but outside, it is not as hot on the ground. The sun rays are not as dense as they are in the summer for us.

I'm sure we learned this is school...but a good refresher is always in order. Plus now we look smart when someone comments on how nice it is to see the sun in January, but that they can't wait for the summer. "Yes, I can't wait either for the June Solstice when the rays of the sun in our Northern Hemisphere are more dense due to the 23.5 degree angle tilt of the earth to the sun in its revolution."

"Nerd."