Ice Storm Poplars #4
by J McCombie
Title
Ice Storm Poplars #4
Artist
J McCombie
Medium
Photograph
Description
This piece has been featured in the FAA Group, "Macro Ice Formation Photos".
As the freezing rain continued from morning through night and into the next day, the weight of the ice became too much to bear for the poplar trees whose branches would bend to their breaking point. All night long into the following day, snaps could be heard throughout the area as tree branches, limbs and trunks broke with the heaviness of the accumulating ice. And as the branches fell, they would thunder to the ground where the ice would shatter like glass and scatter across the sheet of ice which encrusted the ground.
Now the poplar tree trunks stand naked and broken with their tree tops and branches layered at their roots. Yet, when the sun shows it's face again, the beauty of the storm can not be denied.
An ice storm is a type of winter storm characterized by freezing rain, also known as a glaze event or, in some parts of the United States, as a silver thaw. The U.S. National Weather Service defines an ice storm as a storm which results in the accumulation of at least 0.25-inch (6.4 mm) of ice on exposed surfaces. From 1982 to 1994, ice storms were more common than blizzards and averaged 16 per year. They are not violent storms, but instead commonly perceived as gentle rains occurring at temperatures just below freezing. For this reason people may be unaware of the danger if it happens overnight.
The freezing rain from an ice storm covers everything with heavy, smooth glaze ice. In addition to hazardous driving or walking conditions, branches or even whole trees may break from the weight of ice. Falling branches can block roads, tear down power and telephone lines, and cause other damage. Even without falling trees and tree branches, the weight of the ice itself can easily snap power lines and also break and bring down power/utility poles; even electricity pylons with steel frames. This can leave people without power for anywhere from several days to a month. According to most meteorologists, just one quarter of an inch of ice accumulation can add about 500 pounds (230 kg) of weight per line span. Damage from ice storms is highly capable of shutting down entire metropolitan areas.
Uploaded
December 27th, 2013
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Viewed 126 Times - Last Visitor from Sarnia, ON - Canada on 03/27/2024 at 4:03 AM
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