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China’s water-scarce capital went to enormous lengths to make enough artificial snow for the Winter Olympics. But on Saturday morning, athletes in the mountains woke up to the real deal.
Snow was forecast this weekend for the three locations within the bubble. A steady snow fell early Saturday at Zhangjiakou, and overcast skies threatened flurries in Yanqing and Beijing.
The region could get three to six inches of snow by Sunday night. Beijing averages less than one inch of snow in the winter months, with temperatures averaging around 40 degrees Fahrenheit. The snow was forecast to pick up overnight and continue into Sunday in Beijing and the mountains.
Over the past few decades, rapid development has sapped Beijing’s groundwater. July and August often bring heavy rains, but the city and the nearby mountains get only sprinkles of precipitation in the winter.
While a welcome sight for some, the fresh snow may slow athletes in Saturday’s snowboarding, cross-country skiing and biathlon events. They have been training on artificial snow all week.
Fresh, natural snow starts as a tiny ice crystal that slowly grows into a six-sided snowflake as it falls through the air, accumulating as fresh powder. Artificial snow freezes quickly from a single droplet of water and creates a dense, packed and speedy surface.
In order to dust mountains with a thick coat of snow, China diverted water from a key reservoir that supplies Beijing and resettled hundreds of farmers and their families, all to feed one of the most extensive snow-making operations in the history of the Games.
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