While Texas has had a devastating storm for days, viral videos have begun circulating on social media claiming the snow was ‘fake’ or ‘created by the government’. As evidence, users claimed to show that when a lighter was brought near a snowball, it burned instead of melting. However, this reaction has a scientific statement behind it and is not evidence of “false” snow. Conspiracy theories about “snow by man” have been repeatedly exposed in the past.
A recently removed TikTok video with the claim can be seen here . In the 0:49 second track, which has been viewed more than 854,500 times, a woman is heard outside the camera saying: “Thank you Bill Gates for trying (deceptively) to deceive us that this is real snow. You will see that it does not melt, and that it will burn. Snow does not burn (sic), ”says the voice as he brings a lighter to a snowball. Other videos that make similar claims can be seen here and here.
In late January 2014, when a rare ice storm swept across Atlanta, Georgia (here), astronomer Phil Platt ( twitter.com/BadAstronomer , here) hacked a similar claim in a YouTube video (here) in an article for Slate (here), which explains the science behind this phenomenon.
Platt explained that the snow does melt, but does not appear to be dripping because the remaining snow, which is porous, absorbs the water.
Most repetitions also indicate that the alleged fake snow is “burning” because the lighter leaves a “scorch” mark on the snowballs. “It burns, does not melt, just turns black, no water drips, it burns just like burnt plastic,” reads one Facebook post here.
According to a fact check by WUSA9 from 2018 (here), the marks and the smell are the result of the burning butane, which is a colorless gas that is usually used as fuel in lighters that have a ‘vague petroleum-like smell’ (here ).
In his article here, Platt further explained the chemical process behind this dark point: it is not that the snowball is scorching or burning, but it is soot that sticks to the snowball (here).
Butane, which is found in lighters, is a hydrocarbon – a molecule that is partly carbon and partly hydrogen. “When you burn it, the molecule reacts with oxygen in the air, breaking the bonds between atoms and reforming new molecules,” Platt explained, often leading to “some of the carbon molecules reforming into long chains, which we call soot.” ”(Here)
This process is also visually demonstrated in a video by the science interactive center Imagination Station Toledo (youtu.be/YoOD54Dxkk0?t=159).
Some reports (here) specifically claim that the snow in Texas was ‘chemically’ induced with barium hydroxide and ammonium.
The reaction of barium hydroxide and ammonium chloride, often used as examples of endothermic reactions (here, here), does produce a snowy white powdery material as seen in this video from the Chemistry Demonstrations Lab of the University of California. , Berkeley. However, there is no evidence that the snow in Texas was ‘chemically induced’.
The substances used are toxic and are used in small amounts; ammonia gas that can be produced during the experiment is also irritating (here).
Similar conspiracy theories about alleged “synthetic” snow have been uncovered in the past (here, here, here).
Reuters had earlier alleged that President Biden had predicted and manipulated the weather that caused the Texas freeze. Other fact-checking articles related to the winter storm in Texas can be seen here, here, here, here.
VERDICT
Untrue. There is no evidence that the snow in Texas was ‘fake’ or ‘created by the government’. Viral videos claiming that the snow does not melt and that it is rather burning show a common phenomenon that has been explained in the past.
This article was produced by the Reuters Fact Check team. Read more about our work to actually check social media posts.