Meteorological Conditions of a Blizzard

Abstract

THE word “blizzard,” signifying originally a type of snowstorm most common and most severe in the Rocky Mountain States of the Union, although occasionally occurring elsewhere, is now loosely used to mean any heavy snowstorm. This is unfortunate, for a term is needed for the type of storm referred to above. Three things must co-exist in a blizzard—large quantities of very fine snow; very low temperature, generally below zero Fahrenheit; and a high wind of great velocity.