A numerical simulation of the effects of snow particle shapes on blowing snow development

Snow particle shape is an important factor affecting the development of blowing snow. In this paper, we established a numerical model of blowing snow development and compared the changes in numbers of endurance spherical, ellipsoidal, star, hexagonal prism, and cylindrical snow particles in the air with time and their transport rates with time and height during the development. The following are the major conclusions. (1) The effects of snow particle shapes on the numbers of endurance snow particles in the air and the transport rates of snow vary so dramatically, even in a few orders of magnitude, that snow particles should not be simplified as spheres or ellipsoids in simulation. (2) In the logarithmic wind field, the potential energy of spherical snow particles obtained from wind at higher heights is much greater than that of star snow particles at lower heights. Thus, the snow particles with greater energy can eject more snow particles when precipitating to the snow bed. (3) The five snow particles differ in their duration to reach dynamic equilibrium but not in the variation of the numbers of endurance snow particles in the air and the snow transport rates with time. (4) At dynamic equilibrium, the number of endurance snow particles in spherical, ellipsoidal, and star shapes and their heights and transport rates with time are at least one order of magnitude larger than those of the endurance snow particles in hexagonal prism and cylindrical shapes.