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Today I read on a give-away pen the slogan "It is always snowing somewhere".

I don't believe this, but found it a bit hard to prove this wrong..

I found this on google, a quote from "Winter Weather Expert" Paul Kocin.

Because there are always some places, such as in the mountains, over the arctic, etc., that are always below freezing and Earth is a very big place. And of course, when it's summer in one hemisphere, it's winter in the other. Also, when it's fall in one hemisphere, it's spring in another, and we know it snows in many places during the fall and the spring. Another thing to keep in mind is that nearly all rain is snow higher up, so it may not be snowing at the surface but it is five miles up. And since we are a planet of mountains, it is bound to be snowing somewhere.

I found how often does it rain, but that mainly talks about mean rainfall.

David Hammen
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Rob Audenaerde
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    The earth is pretty big [citation needed] and it's always cold somewhere [citation needed] so I wouldn't be surprised if this was the case. – DenisS Jun 15 '18 at 13:14
  • In all seriousness though, it is currently snowing in Alaska and Svalbard is projected for snow later today, and they're in the summer right now. – DenisS Jun 15 '18 at 13:24
  • I think if you narrow it down to a given year it should be pretty easy to prove/disprove whether it snowed somewhere every day, though it might be a lot of data to shovel through. However, the claim that is *always* snowing *somewhere* seems like it would very hard to disprove. – Giter Jun 15 '18 at 13:34
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    Perhaps better suited in Earth Science SE? The question also needs a little borders; there is definitely bands of latitude like the storm tracks in midlatitudes and ITCZ that have constantly rain somewhere and if aloft snowing (as in your quote: rain above that will melt before hitting ground) is counted, then this is definitely a **yes**. Also there are cirrus clouds always somewhere and they are basically ice crystals = snow that have a nonzero falling velocity... – Communisty Jun 15 '18 at 13:46
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    I'm not sure a give-away pen counts as a notable claim. – Ben Barden Jun 15 '18 at 14:34
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    Logic/maths says that the chances of there ever being a time (in our era) without snow are > 0 simply because physics does not guarantee it to always snow. You can of course not prove that unless you have sensors everywhere. Satellites won't suffice. – Sebastian Jun 15 '18 at 14:38
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    What @Sebastian said. It's a good rule of thumb as the chances of there not being snow somewhere on earth at any given moment are pretty small, but they are non-zero as there is no mechanism I am aware of that guarantees this result. However, as I am not a weather expert, my ignorance of such a mechanism isn't proof that there isn't one. As mentioned, Earth Science SE would better be able to provide a conclusive answer based on the best scientific knowledge of today. Still, I strongly suspect that whoever coined the phrase did not mean it as a hard fact but simply as a safe bet. – cpcodes Jun 15 '18 at 16:16
  • The size of an area where it is snowing is usually a very tiny fraction of the total size of Earth. Thus there can easily be several different small areas where it is snowing at the same time, all the time. Earth is over 70 percent ocean and it can snow on the ocean, so cold areas of the ocean where it can snow may equal in area cold areas on land where it can snow. https://www.quora.com/Does-it-snow-in-the-middle-of-the-ocean So it is probable that there is continuous snow in various places Earth for long periods, if not constantly for millennia. – M. A. Golding Jun 15 '18 at 19:28
  • See also https://ca.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20111231205959AA48qbQ – GEdgar Jun 18 '18 at 13:45
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    Paul Kolcin has, indeed, written books on winther weather, and seems to be a serious scientist, having worked at NASA, National Weather Service, NOAA, and The Weather Channel. – GEdgar Jun 18 '18 at 14:02

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