As Michigan was whipped with winter weather and lake-effect snows last week, Paw Paw residents Janice and Eric Pantelleria went outside to find some unusual lawn ornaments: dozens upon dozens of nicely rolled-up snow doughnuts or cylinders across their large lawn.
As USA Today reports, these snowy rollers are a somewhat unusual weather phenomenon, said Megan Varcie, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in White Lake. “You had this kind of heavy, sticky snow coming off the lake that packed together well, combined with heavy winds — West Michigan had wind gusts upward of 40 mph,” she said. “In those conditions, these cylindrical snow rolls can form, especially in open areas without trees.”
“My husband was outside clearing the driveway when he noticed them,” Janice Pantelleria said. “At first he thought that the kids had rolled a couple snowballs in the yard — but then noticed that they were surrounding our house.” Pantelleria’s photos of the snow rolls were shared on Facebook, and received plenty of attention as they were shared around the country by fans and meteorologists alike. “I’m glad everyone is enjoying the photos as much as we enjoyed seeing it firsthand,” Janice Pantelleria said.
What makes a Snow Doughnut form?
Anna Azallion, a multimedia journalist at AccuWeather posted a video on X that explained the natural phenomena. “This is called doughnut ice,” she said in the video. “It forms very similarly to the ice pancakes, but when those pieces collide like they do to make that round shape, the water splashes up on them, right, and then rephrases. That’s why you see more of that kind of white perimeter around the doughnut ice.”
Typically, ice pancakes form on a lake or sea and can occur when waves are active to break up a solid sheet of ice, Azallion said. Azallion also explains that doughnut ice usually forms the same way as ice pancakes but there are some differences. “It creates that thicker ice right around the edges, and that’s why they’re whiter more than clear,” she said. “But just like the ice pancakes, they’re slushy and break apart easily when they’re lifted.”
Where are Snow Doughnuts Commonly Seen?
“Both of these are often found on the Great Lakes,” Azallion said. “The doughnut ice is along Lake Erie in Buffalo there. You can also find in Canada, along the Baltic Sea and in Antarctica.” The two will form when temperatures dip below freezing for a few days, Azallion said.
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Photo Credit: Pierre Williot / Shutterstock.com