How cold does it have to be to snow and how warm is to warm?

Question

How cold does it have to be to snow and how warm is to warm?

Answer 1

If it is snowing, you know that the temperature is below 32 degrees (Fahrenheit) somewhere up in the atmosphere where the precipitation is coming from; there can't be snow if it isn't below freezing. So in a way, it has to be at freezing or below for snow to form, so above 32 degrees is "too warm." But, it can be below freezing up in the atmosphere, and above freezing at the ground, so that the snow forms where it's freezing higher in the atmosphere, and then falls down to the lower atmosphere, where it stays snow until it hits the surface and melts. There's no real rule for how warm is "too warm" at the surface for there to be snow, but I'd reckon that you'd be hard-pressed to find conditions where it's above 40 or 45 degrees at the surface, and it's also cold enough above to be able to see snow hitting the ground.