All morning here, it’s been raining, then snowing, then snowing with rain, then raining again. Looking out the window is like watching (and photographing) impressionistic images being created by fluctuating temperatures.
We suspect that it will get colder and we’ll have some snow to shovel.
A University of Illinois paper provided a concise description of what seems to be going on: “Most precipitation that reaches the ground actually begins as snow high in the atmosphere. These snow flakes develop somewhere above the freezing level where the air temperature is less than 32 F … and begin to fall toward the earth as snow. If ground temperature is above 32 F, the freezing level must be located somewhere above the ground. The falling snow passes through the freezing level into the warmer air, where it melts and changes to rain before reaching the ground.” (Brooklin, Maine)