Dallas, TEXAS — As powerful winter weather continues to impact Texas and much of the United States, residents of the Dallas region experienced an unusual weather phenomenon on Sunday.
Winter Storm Fern, which has brought snow, sleet, ice, and bitter cold to large portions of the central and eastern U.S., remains in effect across multiple states, prompting warnings, disrupted travel, and hazardous conditions.
Meteorologists report that the storm system has delivered a mix of wintry precipitation across Texas, including measurable snow and sleet in North Texas, with dangerously low wind chills and lingering extreme cold through Monday.
In a couple of unusual events for the region, snow tornadoes were captured on video and shared by Dallas, Texas, TV on X (formerly Twitter), showing a rotating column of snow near the Dallas area.
The videos have generated widespread interest among meteorologists and the public alike. The phenomenon appears as a vertical, vortex-like structure of snow and wind, distinct from typical winter storm patterns.
(Source: DallasTexasTV social post)
Why It Happened
Snow tornadoes — sometimes informally called “snownados” or snow funnels — can form when strong winds sweep over loose snow on the ground under specific atmospheric conditions.
These vortices are generally weaker and smaller than traditional tornadoes associated with severe thunderstorms, but they can appear when a combination of strong wind shear, turbulent air, and very cold surface conditions cause swirling columns of air to lift snow into a rotating column.
In the case of the Dallas region on Sunday, extreme cold temperatures paired with gusty winds from Winter Storm Fern provided the necessary ingredients for localized snow vortices to develop. Strong pressure gradients within the storm system produced elevated wind speeds at the surface, which interacted with abundant loose snow to create the rotating snow column seen in the video.
Snow Tornadoes in Context
Snow tornadoes are rare compared with the more familiar severe thunderstorms and tornadoes…
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The post “Snow Tornadoes Captured on Video in Texas during Winter Storm Fern” by Viktor Vincej was published on 01/26/2026 by www.travelinglifestyle.net