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Acid Snow
Name: Seung-il K.
Status: student
Age: 17
Location: N/A
Country: N/A
Date: 2001
Question:
I want to know about Acid Snow. What is different
between acid rain and acid snow.
Replies:
Seung-il,
Precipitation of whatever form normally
occurs on hygroscopic particles. These
can be sulfate, salt, etc., that will
dissolve in water. The type of particle
inherently gives the droplet or snowflake
an acidity or alkalinity; it is usually
acidic. As rain or snow falls from clouds
they remove other particles and gases
that they run into, thereby absorbing
other acidic particles and gases and
becoming more acidic. The more that they
collect, the more acidic they become.
Snow, being mostly frozen water, is not
as efficient a collector as rain, so snow
tends to be less acidic than rain.
The typical pH (acidity) of rain in the
Chicago area is 4.4 and of snow is 4.8.
The lower the number, the more acidic the
precipitation is.
David R. Cook
Atmospheric Research Section
Environmental Research Division
Argonne National Laboratory
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