By Emma Wu
The crystal snow sparkles in the sunlight. This is the artificial snow that was specifically generated for the Beijing Olympics. Beijing doesn’t generate enough natural snowfall itself to have a significant layer of snow for the winter sports. Therefore, they resort to generating artificial snow. This was the first time the Winter Olympics was held with 100% artificial snow.
First, we must understand artificial snow. Artificial snow is created by using “snow guns”. These snow guns used compressed air to break water into small droplets. These small droplets then freeze in the cold air, therefore creating the artificial snow that is transported through a network of tunnel pipes. These snow guns will blast the snow onto the ground, thus creating a blanket of artificial snow over the ground. “Snowcats”, tractor-like vehicles run over the ground, smoothing any bumps in the artificial snow, leading to a completely level playing ground.
However, a series of snow flurries swept through Beijing, unexpectedly. This natural snow poses a slight problem for these Olympics. Beijing is in a naturally warmer climate than many countries that hosted the Winter Olympics. Therefore, the warm climate melts the natural snow, as such, creating a more dangerous and less reliable playing field for these athletes. Hence, this natural snow was removed from the playing ground and artificial snow was spread across the ground. The Olympics went on.
