Cause and effect: Here's how different temperatures produce specific types of 'effect snow'
In some unique cases, the recipe for snow comes down to a cause and effect that differs from traditional snowstorms: when cold air interacts with warm water, the temperature difference can produce snow.
Cause and effect: How different temperatures produce unique snowstorms
FOX Weather Meteorologist Craig Herrera analyzes how frigid air can trigger unique snowstorms through temperature differences. In this set up, lake-effect snow is the most popular, though there are several different "cousins" of lake-effect snow, including ocean-effect, river-effect, Gulf-effect and more.
The recipe for snow is simple, and it doesn't have anything to do with turning your pajamas inside out or putting a spoon under your pillow.
In some unique scenarios, it comes down to a cause and effect that differs from traditional snowstorms: when cold air interacts with warm water, the temperature difference can produce snow.
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"Usually we see snow ahead of a cold front like a clipper system, north of a warm front like a nor'easter, but another way is through a temperature gradient between the warmer air near the surface of a water mass and the cooler air above," FOX Weather Meteorologist Craig Herrera said.
"The difference in the temperature promotes the upward motion, it leads to the development of clouds and then eventually the snowfall," he continued.
The most popular scenario that triggers this type of set-up is the one you see most: lake-effect snow.
While the lake-effect is the strongest of this kind of snow set-up, it has a number of lesser-known "cousins" that produce snow in unique ways that all stem from the interaction between cold and warm temperatures.
Lake-effect snow
Americans living in proximity to Lake Michigan and the other Great Lakes are no stranger to lake-effect snow because of the extremely harsh winter weather conditions it can bring to those communities.
Feet of snow, whiteout conditions, snow blowers and shovels – these are all commonly used terms when lake-effect snow pummels areas downwind of the Great Lakes during the late-fall and winter months.
The most popular of the "effect" snows is lake-effect snow, which stems from the Great Lakes. Snow is produced by cold winds blowing over warm, unfrozen lake waters. This type of snow can produce feet of snow, as observed in communities off the shores of Lake Michigan this winter. (FOX Weather)
Lake-effect snow develops when cold, dry air, often originating from Canada, flows across the relatively warmer waters of the Great Lakes and, in the most intense scenarios, can hammer the Great Lakes region with heavy snow.
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Chicago is a major city that often falls under the bullseye of lake-effect snowbanks, in addition to smaller suburbs neighboring the Great Lakes.
FILE: ERIE, PENNSYLVANIA, UNITED STATES - DECEMBER 2: An unforgiving lake-effect snow blankets the Great Lakes, disrupting daily life in New York and Pennsylvania, United States on December 02, 2024. (Lokman Vural Elibol/Anadolu / Getty Images)
As that cold air passes over the Lakes, warmth and moisture from the water are picked up and transferred into the lowest portion of the Earth’s atmosphere. This rising air condenses into clouds, which can grow into narrow bands that are capable of producing snowfall rates on the order of 2 to 3 inches per hour or more, according to the National Weather Service.
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Ocean-effect snow
A recent example of ocean-effect snow happened when a powerful nor'easter charged up the East Coast, and brought snow to the Boston area.
"You have got relatively warm water over the ocean, very cold air above, and we see that move over the ocean and onto the land," Herrera said.
A recent example of ocean-effect snow recently occurred in the Boston area, where a strong nor'easter enhanced winds over warner ocean waters and produced snow. (FOX Weather)
The setup is very similar to that of lake-effect snow, but occurs over the ocean instead of the Great Lakes.
Scituate, MA - February 1: A person shovels plowed snow out of their driveway on February 1, 2026. (Photo by Finn Gomez/The Boston Globe via Getty Images) (FOX Weather)
"This was in the wake of a bomb cyclone, and all that cold air that dragged down to the surface was the perfect setup for ocean-effect snow all around portions of Boston," Herrera said.
Gulf-effect snow
On the west coast of Florida, even in the winter, snow is uncommon.
However, in the rare event that frigid temperatures reach the Sunshine State, the interaction between the cold temperatures and warm water could produce a rare snow event.
Gulf-effect snow brought rare flurries to the west coast of Florida for the first time since 2010. In an extremely rare event, the frigid temperatures in the Sunshine State interacted with warm Gulf water and produced snow. (FOX Weather)
For the first time since 2010, flurries stemming from gulf-effect snow were seen on Florida's gulf coast.
The extremely rare snow event stemmed from an arctic blast that reached into the Deep South, setting the stage for the infrequent stand-off between freezing temperatures and the warm gulf water, creating a significant enough difference to bring flurries to Florida.
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River-effect snow
The rare temperature interaction isn't limited to massive bodies of water along a coastline.
River-effect snow can produce light snow when cold winds blow over warm unfrozen winter waters.
River-effect snow is produced by cold winds blowing over warm unfrozen river waters. An example can be observed in Nashville, Tennessee, where the warmer temperatures stemming from the Cumberland River interact with cold winds. (FOX Weather)
An example of river-effect snow can be observed in Nashville, over the Cumberland River, when the interaction produced light snow that was observed on live cameras.
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"Some frigid winds lined up over the Cumberland River in Nashville just enough for that temperature difference to take effect," Herrera said.
Industrial-effect snow
Sometimes you don't even need a body of water to produce a temperature difference strong enough to produce snow.
"This is the wildcard," Herrera said.
Industrial-effect snow occurs when snow develops as warm steam is released into the cold atmosphere. In this example, a manufacturing facility in Fort Wayne, Indiana helps produce snow that occurs downwind from the source. (FOX Weather)
Industrial-effect snow occurs when a man-made facility like a steel plant in Fort Wayne, Indiana, releases steam into the atmosphere and interacts with an arctic air mass that creates snow showers over the city.