Snow bomb, Arctic blast, blizzard: 9 terms to know as the temperature plummets and the UK is issued alerts for severe snow

As the UK plunges into a freezing January, and drivers face being stranded as National Highways has issued a severe weather alert for snow, NationalWorld takes a look at different snow terms to help decipher weather reports. 

The current snow and ice warning is in place from 3am today (Monday 15 January) until 9am on Tuesday (16 January) across Northern Ireland with another for ice in place until 11am on Monday across parts of northeast Wales and north west England from Liverpool to the West Midlands.

So what are some snow terms you need to keep an eye out for? 

Arctic Blast: A sudden drop in temperatures, due to an influx of Arctic or polar air, and usually accompanied by a strong northwesterly wind. Thermometers can drop dramatically in just a few hours.

Blizzard: winds of at least 35 miles per hour along with considerable falling and/or blowing snow reducing visibility to less than one-quarter mile for a period of at least three hours - often associated with extremely cold conditions 

Black Ice: A glaze of ice so thin it blends in with "black" pavement and usually cannot be seen - occurs when light rain is followed by temperatures plunging below freezing

Bomb: Usually a bomb cyclone" or "snow bomb". The full term is "bombogenesis," which is a rapid intensification of a storm system, with central pressure falling at least 1 millibar per hour for 24 hours

Flash freeze: When tumbling temperatures cause any residual wet surfaces and puddles to freeze rapidly

Graupel: snow pellets bigger than sleet but smaller than hail

Wind Chill: takes both the ambient air temperature and the wind speed into account to quantify the human health impacts of cold, blustery weather

Snowfall: the depth of new snow that has accumulated since the previous day or since the previous observation

Snow squall: a brief, but intense fall of snow that greatly reduces visibility and is often accompanied by strong winds