Patterns in Nature: Snow and Ice

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  Ice Cave Ceiling

  Photograph by Carsten Peter

  Peaks and valleys ripple across the ceiling of an ice cave in Bavaria, Germany.
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  Snowflake Crystal

  Photograph by John Dunn

  A snowflake appears translucent when photographed up-close.
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  Ice Fractures

  Photograph by John Dunn

  Fractures create ribbon-like patterns in thick ice on Ellesmere Island, Canada.
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  Dendrite Snowflake

  Photograph by Kenneth Libbrecht

  Dendrite snowflakes first occur when the temperature hovers between 30 degrees Fahrenheit (-1 degree Celsius) and 27 degrees Fahrenheit (-3 degrees Celsius).
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  Glacier Ice

  Photograph by John Dunn

  A salmon-colored rock stands out from a background of patterned glacier ice on Baffin Island, Canada.
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  Sectored Plate Snowflake

  Photograph by Kenneth Libbrecht

  A snowflake's shape depends on the temperature at which it forms. This type of snowflake, called a sectored plate, forms when the temperate dips below about 5 degrees Fahrenheit (-15 degrees Celsius).
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  Plate Snowflake Crystal

  Photograph by Kenneth Libbrecht

  Scientists aren't sure why temperature affects crystal formation and leads to different shapes of snowflakes.
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  Dendrite Snowflake Crystal

  Photograph by Kenneth Libbrecht

  Scientist and photographer Kenneth Libbrecht, chair of the physics department at the California Institute of Technology, studies snowflakes "in the wild" and grows his own under controlled conditions.
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  Snowy Hills

  Photograph by Jay Dickman

  The sun casts shadows on snow-covered hills in North America.