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The biggest myth is that a blizzard is defined by how deeply snow is piled up by a given storm system. Actually, the definition of a blizzard by the U.S. National Weather Service has nothing to do with snow depth - it is based on (1) wind and (2) how dramatically visibility is reduced by snow or blowing snow (that is, it's not how the flakes pile up, it's how they obscure vision, that is the primary measure of a blizzard). Blowing snow can create blizzard conditions when no snow is falling at all.From the National Weather Service glossary, a blizzard occurs when two conditions prevail (they needn't be met constantly) for a period of at least 3 hours: winds of 35 mph or higher, and visibility reduced to 1/4 mile or less.


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12y ago

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