Snow

Snow, or top snow in Bedrock Edition, is a ground cover block that is commonly caused by snowfall.

Obtaining
Destroying snow with a shovel yields two snowballs, plus an additional one snowball per extra layer on top (meaning a three tall layer drops four snowballs). If it is destroyed with anything other than a shovel, nothing is dropped.

Natural generation
Snow naturally generates in snowy biomes – ice plains, ice spikes, cold taiga, frozen river and cold beach – and in the extreme hills biome above layer 95.

Snow will generate in single layers in the Java Edition, and can generate in multiple layers in Bedrock Edition.

Snowfall
In snowy biomes or in cold biomes at varying layers, it will snow instead of rain, and while it is snowing, snow will generate on random non-transparent blocks with a block light level of 10 or less, with the exception of packed ice.

In Bedrock Edition, multiple snow layers are built up naturally during snowfall; in the Java Edition, snowfall only creates one layer.

Snow golems
Snow golems generate a trail of snow in snowy, cold, and some medium biomes, or any non-dry biome in Bedrock Edition.

Cover
If the snow is on a grass block, podzol or on mycelium, the ground cover will turn white on the top and around the sides. Snow will not damage tilled and hydrated field areas – it cannot be placed on farmland. Gravity-affected blocks like sand and gravel will not fall if the block below them has snow on it, but they will replace a snow layer if they fall onto it.

Top snow can occupy the same space as one-block flowers, mushrooms, and one-block ferns and tall grass, (however two-block tall plants do not work) and can be layered and mined normally. Placing snow on already-existing plant blocks will cause snow to appear around them, but placing plants into an area where there is snow removes the snow.

Melting
Snow will melt if there is a block light level of 12 or more. In Bedrock Edition, it will also melt in dry biomes, regardless of block light or daylight level. If there are multiple layers, all layers melt at once; the snow levels do not gradually reduce in height.

Falling block
In Bedrock Edition, top snow is affected by gravity and will fall if unsupported. On leaves topped with a layer of snow, little particles of snow appear to fall through the leaves from the snow layer.

Data values
A snow layer has the ID name.

Trivia

 * Snow can be stacked to a full block beside a cactus without destroying the cactus.
 * Attempting to place torches on snow will replace the snow with a torch.
 * Snow on a block of soul sand makes the soul sand act like a normal block.
 * Snow layers of 2 to 7 thickness prevent hostile mobs from spawning.
 * In Spectator mode, If you position the player at the correct height, you can see the snowy texture of the top of grass blocks.