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Every snowflake needs a snowflake starter, a tiny solid particle less colloquially known as an ice nucleator. It can be a spec of dust, soot or ash, a piece of pollen or a fungal spore, anything onto which water vapor in a cloud can collect and freeze. Oftentimes, snowflake starters are alive…
Pseudomonas syringae is a species of bacteria able to make water freeze at the highest temperatures of any other living snowflake starter. We have them to thank for much precipitation. But starting a snowflake is just one part of the creature’s fascinating life cycle.
