With the advent of winter we usually look forward to snow, especially the children. Snow is and sleigh rides, slides, and a snow, and playing in the snow, and also stunning beauty of the landscapes.

But there are a lot of interesting things about snow that not everyone knows.

What do you think, what is the dust, mashed potatoes, cauliflower? This is not what You are immediately introduced. The so-called different kinds of snow, still known snow-champagne, Bang-Bang, and sticky snow. The idea with names belong skiers.

We all saw those tiny snowflakes, but among them are giants. So in the Guinness Book of world Records fell snowflake, discovered in 1887 in Montana. The size she was amazed - 38 cm width, thickness of a record holder - 20 centimeters.

Quite unexpectedly, but snow cover in white, which we used to see is a kind of deception. Snow colorless. Light is reflected from surfaces, formed by snow crystals. If the air contains a large quantity of any additives, substances, dust, snow can be as pink and grey. Six years ago Siberia marveled orange snow, Omsk twice was scared gray snow, 2010 Krasnodar saw snow pink.

Snowfall can also set records. A half meter of snow fell during the day in 1913 in Georgetown, and almost two meters of snow fell in 1921 on the lake Sylvester, Colorado. The record boasts mount Baker, a layer of snow, height 28.5 meters was formed here in 1998-1999 Palm "to select" failed.

WIM Hof Man Ice. Dutch record has a remarkable ability to withstand low temperatures, snow and strong wind. He managed to swim 80 meters under the ice of the North pole and 2 hours 16 minutes 34 seconds to run through the snow in Finland.

And A. Wilson Bentley was named Man-Snowflake. This master micrograph, the archive of which more than 5,000 photo snowflakes. In addition to photographs he has written many articles, books, journals. For Bentley, it was a "tiny miracles of beauty", the study of which he himself had dedicated.

In the hands of a specialist snow and ice can become a work of art. Sculpture-record holder was a stunning 35-metre creation 200 meters in length, on which he labored over 600 artists. The masterpiece was the "highlight" of the International festival of snow and ice sculptures in Harbin in 2007.