A fast moving system brought snow squalls to the upper Midwest and Northeast on Tuesday, like this one in State College, PA. The squall came in so quickly, a murder of crows were caught off guard flying around sporadically.
The poor crows didn't know what to do when the squall came through State College. #pawx pic.twitter.com/KTCwuxrCov
— Marisa Ferger (@MarisaFerger) January 12, 2016
A snow squall is a sudden burst of heavy snow with gusty winds causing whiteout conditions. Unlike a blizzard though, squalls are short-lived in a small area.
Squalls can be most dangerous to cars and airplanes. The abrupt loss of visibility and slippery roads can paralyze motorist and roadways. This was the case in the I-74 pileup in Indiana on Tuesday, involving more than 30 vehicles.
For WeatherNation: Meteorologist Monica Cryan