Snowfall

Snowfall is an element in the game. Much like rain, it is a type of weather. It currently exists in the Beta version of the game.

Behavior
Snowfall happens occasionally and will only fall in the Tundra and Taiga biomes and causes water that does not have a block above it to become ice, as well as gradually covering all blocks in snow with the exception of transparent blocks. Snowfall will happen at the same time as rain is falling. If you are between a biome that produces rain and another that produces snow, you can see both snow and rain.

Rain and snow

 * Rain and snowfall are temporary but global occurrences.
 * During rain and snow, thunderstorms become possible.
 * Rain and snowfalls decrease the light level by 3, to light level 12 in full daylight.
 * When the player is under the surface, snow will make the same sound that rain does, giving the impression that it is raining when it is actually snowing.

Snowfall only

 * Snow will only regenerate whilst snowing.


 * Snow will destroy redstone and rail tracks whilst snowing in 1.9 pre release

History
Snowfall was reintroduced in Beta 1.5 after having been removed during Alpha with the Halloween Update.

Trivia

 * Usually it starts to snow at night or at dusk.
 * If it is snowing and you go to sleep it will most likely have stopped before you wake.
 * Snow will still fall even if you are above the cloud layer.
 * When it rains, it also snows in different biomes, despite the fact that the effects of each are not similar. (Snowfall generating snow/re-frosting ice, and rainfall causing thunderstorms from time to time.
 * Snow no longer generate or fall in 1.8 update. This will be fixed by Notch, most likely in 1.9.