The current episode of real winter in Romania has brought along a new wave of conspiracies that have gone viral on TikTok, after some users (with not even minimal scientific knowledge) noticed that snow does not immediately melt when you pick it up or place it near a flame.
So, they claim that this snow contains plastic, chips, or that it is „fake snow.” They have even filmed themselves testing how the snow does not melt on a grill, near the flame of a stove, or with the help of a lighter, and the clips have thousands and thousands of views.
- "Snow on the grill, here you go! And it doesn't melt. Just to show you it's artificial."
- "Look, it doesn't melt. They put a chip in this snow!"
Physicists have explained the phenomenon.
"The snow will melt. It just takes longer. Your hand, outside, is cold, so it gives a little warmth to the snowball. Put the snowball on a hot plate," says Cristian Presură, in an explanatory video posted on Facebook.
Another specialist explains why a snowball does not immediately melt on a hot grill - because of the Leidenfrost effect.
"The melting is much slower because the outer layer of snow vaporizes almost instantly. And that layer of vapor formed acts as an insulator and does not allow all the heat from the grill to reach the snowball," says engineer Teodor Dumitrache, quoted by Europa FM.
Another engineer also says, in a comment on Facebook:
"A snowball does not immediately melt on a hot grill due to the Leidenfrost effect. This phenomenon occurs when a liquid (in this case, the water from the snow) comes into contact with a surface much hotter than its boiling point.
When you place the snowball on the grill, the ice layer on the surface instantly transforms into water vapor. These vapors create an insulating layer between the snowball and the hot surface, reducing direct heat transfer. Thus, the snowball appears to resist melting quickly for a longer period of time."
If you were to lower the grill's temperature below this critical point, then the snowball would melt much faster."
The theory of "fake snow" is not even new and is based on the idea of "weather control", which is frequently promoted in various conspiracy circles, along with "chemtrails."