This Saturday, December 28, the residents of Moissy-Cramayel, in Seine et Marne, woke up with their feet in snow, but snow of industrial origin. A phenomenon which occurs regularly in the sector and which is the result of several elements: humidity, cold and the presence of fine particles in the atmosphere.
This Saturday, December 28, the residents of Moissy-Cramayel, in Seine-et-Marne, woke up with their feet in the snow. But nothing to marvel at for too long, since this white coat on the gardens and roofs is just industrial snow. Neither natural nor artificial snow like that projected by snow cannons in ski resorts, but the result of air pollution.
On sidewalks and lawns, the result shines and gives the impression of real snow.
To create this industrial snow, “you need several elements that come together”, says meteorologist Patrick Marlière, director of Medias Weather, to BFM Paris Île-de-France. It details:
“The first is the atmospheric situation with a lot of humidity. And this has been the case for several days in Seine-et-Marne and Île-de-France. Then, there needs to be frost, and therefore low temperatures in the early morning and above all, pollution by the projection of fine particles into the atmosphere”, underlines the meteorologist.
These fine particles which are found in the air can come from wood fires and in particular chimney fires at the moment, from pollution released by vehicles. “The third source, perhaps the most important, is when we are near industrial sites which release these fine particles into the atmosphere,” assures Patrick Marlière.
In conclusion: frost, humidity in the atmosphere and fine particles are necessary to create this semblance of a snow cover. It is therefore a phenomenon exclusively observed in winter.
A recurring phenomenon
The last time this industrial snow was observed in Moissy-Cramayel was in January 2022.
Patrick Marlière explains that the phenomenon “is observed regularly, almost every year”. “We observe them almost everywhere, in Strasbourg, in Dijon, in the North of France,” underlines the meteorologist. This Saturday, October 28, certain sectors of Beauvais and Nogent-sur-Oise were also under industrial snow.
Léna Mahmoud with Maïwenn Furic
