Winter Weather
This term describes the temperature at which frost begins forming on surfaces.
What is the dew point?
These crystal formations form when water vapor turns directly into ice without becoming liquid first.
What are snowflakes?
This winter pastime involves strapping long, narrow boards to your feet and gliding down snowy slopes.
What is skiing?
This country is famous for winter “ice hotels,” rebuilt each year from snow and ice blocks.
What is Sweden?
This Olympic sport involves sliding a stone down ice toward a target called a “house.”
What is curling?
This type of storm forms when cold, dry air passes over warmer lake water, creating intense localized snowfall.
What is lake-effect snow?
This process, common in winter, describes water changing directly from solid ice into water vapor.
What is sublimation?
This activity uses a small, curved piece of plastic or wood and relies on balance as you slide down a hill.
What is sledding?
The Harbin International Ice and Snow Festival, known for massive ice sculptures, is held in this country.
What is China?
This activity involves walking across snow using special wide frames strapped to your shoes.
What is snowshoeing?
These fast-moving, narrow bands of strong wind in the upper atmosphere often influence winter weather patterns.
What are jet streams?
Many mammals grow this thicker seasonal layer to help regulate body heat in winter.
What is a winter coat or undercoat?
This Olympic sport involves athletes navigating a twisting ice track headfirst on a small sled.
What is skeleton?
This nation experiences a phenomenon called “polar night,” where the sun doesn’t rise for weeks during winter.
What is Norway? (Accept: Finland, Sweden, Russia)
In this winter sport, athletes ski down mountains and around poles at high speed.
What is slalom skiing?
A winter storm becomes this when winds exceed 35 mph and visibility drops below a quarter mile for at least three hours.
What is a blizzard?
This type of tree retains its green needles through the winter instead of shedding leaves.
What is an 'evergreen'?
In many northern countries, this form of long-distance skiing is used both recreationally and competitively.
What is cross-country skiing?
This body of water between the U.S. and Russia often freezes in winter despite strong currents.
What is the Bering Strait?
This sport, often played on frozen ponds, uses a puck, skates, and pads.
What is ice hockey?
This dangerous phenomenon occurs when supercooled water droplets freeze instantly upon contact with surfaces.
What is freezing rain or ice accretion?
When ponds freeze, fish survive thanks to this insulative property of ice—it’s less dense than water.
What is 'ice floats', or the density anomaly of water?
This Scandinavian winter sport combines cross-country skiing with rifle marksmanship.
What is the biathlon?
The coldest temperature ever recorded on Earth, –128.6°F (–89.2°C), occurred on this continent’s winter plateau.
What is Antarctica?
This Olympic sliding sport is known as the fastest on ice, with athletes lying on their backs on a tiny sled.
What is luge?