[WATCH] Photographer Reverse Melting of Snowflakes

Snowflakes are truly wonders of nature, and capturing how they form is quite the feat. In a video recently posted on YouTube, photographer Jans shared stunning footage of a reverse melting of five different snowflakes.

Each shot started with a tiny droplet of water that slowly sprouts icicles until it freezes back to its unique design. The photographer made this video using highly detailed macro photography to make tiny objects look larger than the life-size.

'Melting Snowflakes in Reverse'

Jans manages the Youtube channel Another Perspective that features several Do-It-Yourself (DIY) tutorials, photography hacks, tips, and inspiration for other photographers.

In the video he posted online, entitled 'Melting Snowflakes in Reverse,' Jans used Sony a6300 and Sony a7R IV as the main camera to capture the captivating melting of snowflakes.

He focused on five different snowflakes and recorded their melting. But on his video, the snowflakes are melting in reverse; that is why it starts with a droplet then slowly becomes a snowflake, the Straight News Online reported.

The five snowflakes shown in the video showed no one snowflake has the same pattern, although they all started as water droplets.

Snowflakes are formed from water vapor that travels through the cold air at least 32 degrees Fahrenheit, which transforms it slowly into crystals. But there are two ways that vapor condenses that affect the shape of the snowflakes.

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According to the National Oceanic and Atmosphere Administration (NOOA), the first type is known as facets wherein the resulted snowflakes form a 3D shape, like a prism.

"In ice crystals, the shape they take mirrors the shape of the molecules forming the crystal," explained NOAA. "The crystal structure of ice is a six-sided shape. Therefore an icy facet is six-sided as well. That is where the symmetry in a snowflake comes from."

Meanwhile, the second way creates stunning tree-like branches that start to form from the center. This happens because the water vapor will first condense on the first thing it touches, MailOnline reported.

According to NOAA, the vapor will condense there instead of traveling any further when there is a small bump o the snowflake's surface. "Now the bump is bigger and even more likely to 'catch' water vapor at that point. The process repeats itself, and a branch is formed," the agency said.

Unique Pattern of Snowflakes

In 2017, researchers probed into snowflakes to know if do they really have unique patterns. To answer the centuries-old question, they probe to the molecular-level of the icy crystals.

They found that snowflakes having a unique pattern is not entirely true, Science Times reported. Researchers said an inch chance that a snowflake could have a twin snowflake or two snowflakes that have the same pattern. But the chances of this happening are too low.