Science of snowflakes

Yes, snowflakes are my topic this week. There are so many interesting facts about snowflakes. The most wide spread known being the fact that two snowflakes are never exaclty the same. If you ever wondered how do people know, the answer is - there are scientists exploring the beauty and finding more information about them. The science of snowflakes.

Snowflakes/Pinterest

So where does this leave us nowadays - with information like that snowflakes always have six sides and they are similar to the human fingerprints. The form and shape of snowflakes depends majorly upon the temperature and moisture content of the cloud. There are six main snowflake categories - plate, column, stars, dendrite andcapped column. The colder the weather, the simpler the design of the snowflake. Actually, when it is colder the snowflake has the finest shape. And when the temperature is close to 0 degrees, the snowflakes become very complex in design.

Scientists have also found that the world's largest snowflake was 38 centimetres wide and 20 centimetres thick. And this is information from 1887. Snowflakes are the most beautiful inventions of nature and I would always admire their beauty.

Thank you for following my wintery blog!

Skiing again!

My last post will be about skiing again as it is my favourite sport. Skiing is actually one of the oldest sports in the world. Evidence has shown that skiing dates back to 5000 B.C. in modern Norway and Sweden. At least, this is the time of the carvings found depicting primitive skiers with one pole. The fisrt primitive skis were also found to from this time. The primitive ski looked exactly like a piece of wood. The word "ski" itself means " a split piece of wood or firewood" in Norway.

While the fisrt ski club and skiing competitions started around 1850, nowadays we do not only have world competitions and Olympiads but also very different types of skiing ranging from alpine skiing to nordic skiing and cross-country skiing.

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I personally prefer alpine skiing, one that usually takes place in the ski resorts. Everyone has the opportunity to find his/her style and of course his/her pair of ski as the diversity there is also big. Skiing is one of the most popular sports but it is very dangerous and is usually connected with a lot of knee traumas and/or many others.

If you haven't tried this sport, you should because you miss a lot!!

Avalanches...

Everything you need to know!!

I have had the experience to actually ski over an avalanche or the most dangerous place for skiing in Bulgaria - Borovetz, Markoudjik 3. And I remember vividly the instructions they gave me before we went for it: "If you hear a crack and the snow starts moving, just ski either to the right or to the left, that's all you can do!"

Avalanche/ Pinterest

I was just 12 and I was so scared but I wanted to do this so much and it was a lot of fun skiing in the powder. The adrenalin - 100 %!

The safety tips everyone gives for avalanches:
- Be alert for recent avalanches
- Be alert for signs of unstable snow
- be alert of heavy snowfall for the past days
- be alert for a wind blown snow
- be alert for a significant warming or rapidly increasing temperatures
- be alert for a weak layers

If caught in an avalanche there is no way out. It is a dead trap. However, there are some things that might help: shout, run to the side, try to remain on top of a block, get rid of gear, sacks, skis and try swimming motions because they might help

That is a snowstorm!

This week I am will talk about the biggest snow storms ever happened. One of them happened in 1967 in Midwestern U.S. This is one of the worst brutal blizzards and monstrous snow storms in U.S. The fortunate part of this is that many parts of this region were more sparsely populated than the eastern U.S., so the effects of these storms haven't been as acute. This storm, however, hit not just Chicago but cities as disparate as Kalamazoo, Michigan, and Gary, Indian.

Snow totals topped 61 cm, and winds exceeded 80.5 kph. Sadly, the storm left 76 dead -- 26 in Chicago alone with the record for a 24-hour snowfall in Chicago -  58.4 cm. Strangely, the area saw record high temperatures in the 60s and a severe tornado outbreak in the days before the storm hit. You wouldn’t want to be anywhere near such a blizzard ever.

Next post I will tell you more about avalanches and where are the more dangerous places in Bulgaria for skiers!

The roof of the Earth

Mount Everest

I have always wondered why do alpinists risk their lives to climb the highest mountain in the world. And at the same time I know the answer to my question, it is worth it to see this amazing view. Being on the top of the world is a life changing experience and that is why more and more people each year decide to risk it all to do this. I found some interesting facts for Mt Everest.

It was discovered in 1841 by George Everest (Surveyor General of India) and it was renamed in his honor. The exact height of the mountain is often disputed and the mountain itself rises a few millimetres each year because of geological forces. The first people to conquer the mountain were Sir Edmund Hilary and Tenzing Norgay in 1953. More interesting facts are that over 2000 people have reached the top and there are around 120 bodies of climbers on the mountain. The greatest cause of death for the climbers is the avalanches. The youngest person to reach summit was 13 and the oldest was 70.

The local people call the mountain Chomolangma which means “mother of universe”.

Check out this interesting short documentary for Mount Everest!

The best freeriding parks in the world

Awesome parks

It is amazing how many places there are around the world for the freestyle and freeriding maniacs. I am very disappointed that there are no such places in Bulgaria. The breathtaking resorts have created the impossible to make sure that all freestylers are satisfied.

One of the best freestyle parks in the world (Livigno/Italy)

In the USA, there is a place called Mammoth Mountain which is well in tune with the freestyler’s needs. The best thing about it is that it offers not only jumps designed for the skiers/snowboarders but also naturals hits. Another such beautiful place is Bear Mountain again in the USA. This is probably the heaven of freestyle riding because almost every run features a jump or rail. It is like a huge park for freeriders! Mayrhofen located in Austria is yet another good place for this exciting sport. The Burton park there makes it a big attraction for locals and worldwide tourists seeking opportunities to practice their favourite hobby. This resort is located in a beautiful valley and is loaded with big table-tops and excellent half-pipe as well as a separate line for those not practicing those extreme sports.

Lastly, I would mention Livigno in Italy. The freestyling park has a world class facilities for freeriders. It holds open competitions and thus it is an expert park.