why is it not snowing if its below 32 degrees?

Question

sorry guys im from houston so we dont get snow very often my question is why if its below 32 degrees is it still raining and not snowing. i hope some of you northerners can help?

Answer 1

too warm above

"...water drops can remain liquid in our atmosphere even at temperatures below freezing....these drops are called 'supercooled'...
drizzle, which is composed of small liquid droplets, can form as liquid and remain unfrozen even when temperatures are continually below freezing....
in these cases, the clouds form as tiny liquid drops, even though the air temperature is below 32 f....
this happens in relatively shallow clouds in which no part of the cloud has temperatures too far below freezing, so the cloud doesn’t contain any snow..."
http://www.wxdude.com/humidity.html
(scroll down for complete explaination)

would you LIKE some snow, jeremy....
'cause we folks up north are ALL about sharing.

Answer 2

The air temperature higher above the ground may be well above freezing. If the warmer rain falls to the ground throught the colder air where you are before it can freeze, you'll have rain. That rain may freeze quickly once it hits the ground, forming a glaze of clear ice. If the rain freezes while it is falling, it will form sleet. If the precipitation forms in ther clouds at temperatures below freezing, snow is often the result.

Answer 3

Snow is formed while the moisture that falls from the cloud is going to fall by using air this is decrease than freezing the entire way down. Rain is formed while it falls as the two ice or liquid and has an threat to soften in the previous it reaches the floor. There are exampled (like sleet and freezing rain) the place each case is blurred at the same time. Sleep happens while precip falls, melts, then re-freezes into ice in the previous hitting the floor. Freezing rain happens while precip falls, melts, will become supercooled (from falling by using element of the ambience the place the temp. is decrease than freezing) and freezes quickly upon hitting the floor simply by fact the floor acts as a nucleus for the droplet to freeze to.

Answer 4

Because the atmosphere where the rain is formed is not freezing. Warmer air is above the cooler air. Not that it is 75 degrees but just warmer than freezing. thus rain falls instead of snow.

As the rain falls thru the atmosphere it has an evaporative cooling effect on the air, so it is colder but doesn't freeze the rain as it falls.

Answer 5

Urban area's have there own weather patterns due to temperature varitions within city limits. Also, you may experience a rain snow mix as the air temp above ground may be warmer than freezing. The Gulf of Mexico will also adversly effect your weather patterns as it has it's own flow of warm/cold air.