Snow in SE AZ! Obligatory snow on cactus pics!

[Kali]

Cholla


Prickly Pear


Barrel

[tigereye]

1. how do cacti they react to snow?

is it bad news, or a moisture fest?


:hi: What a fascinating ecology the desert seems to be. (we are re-read Dune and are now re- watching the mini-series, and I'm reading "Walking the Bible.")

[azmouse]

2. Snow in the desert rarely lasts long enough to do damage.

And the cactus love the moisture.

I was in the Saguaro National Park in the early 90s when it was snowing. I'll never forget seeing the snow on those huge cactus.

[Kali]

4. Snow doesn't bother them a bit, but freezing temps (usually the next night)

can damage them. I'm actually in what is called the Chihuahuan semi-desert grassland and we get a little colder than the Sonoran desert. They get frost bite and can get a rotting infection from it. Usually with the Opuntias, they will just shed the bad pads. The Barrels will sometimes get a brown scabby place on them.

Snow is a good insulator - it is the cold, clear, dry, nights that do damage.

[Ptah]

3. Excellent pictures. No snow herein central Tucson. Here's one of Kitt Peak

[Kali]

5. cool shots!

nothing in town? Weather was saying maybe down to 2200 feet! Looked like Benson got dusted, it's about 3200 - 3500.

[Ptah]

6. Here's the Catalinas earlier this morning.

I heard that Vail got some too.

[Kali]

7. Yeah, I heard there were some cars sliding off the interstate between Tucson and Benson.

Man, I can't figure out what the buildings are or where that was taken from. Is the flag out in front of ASM?

[Ptah]

9. The Arizona Webcam

http://www.cs.arizona.edu/camera/


"This view of the Santa Catalina Mountains looks north across the
University of Arizona campus from the Computer Science offices in
the Gould-Simpson building. A new image is generated once a minute."

Yes, I think that flag is in front of the Arizona Science Museum.

[CreekDog]

12. Sniff, that brings back memories

:hi:

i like the UA campus.

[tigereye]

15. wow, cool pic! Are those various observatories?

[Ptah]

16. Kitt Peak National Observatory

http://www.noao.edu/kpno/

Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO), part of the National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO),
supports the most diverse collection of astronomical observatories on Earth for nighttime optical
and infrared astronomy and daytime study of the Sun. Sharing the mountaintop site with the
National Solar Observatory, KPNO, founded in 1958, operates three major nighttime telescopes and
hosts the facilities of consortia which operate 19 optical telescopes and two radio telescopes.
(See the Tenant Observatories list.) Kitt Peak is located 56 miles southwest of Tucson, AZ,
in the Schuk Toak District on the Tohono O'odham Nation and has a Visitor Center open daily to the public.

[skygazer]

8. My one trip to the Grand Canyon was in January and it had snowed

There was almost no one there and it was gorgeous. It was my 40th birthday and my most memorable so far.

[CreekDog]

11. I saw the Grand Canyon filled with fog while I was working there

quite a site. :D

[Kali]

14. That is the only time I really remember seeing it.

Pretty sure I was there as a little kid, but I only remember going in college and camping south of there and getting snowed in at the little campground. Then finally getting out and almost sliding into another vehicle on the way back to Flagstaff - desert rats can barely drive when it rains, we are helpless on ice!

[CreekDog]

10. Are you near Chiricahua or Safford or where?

:shrug:

I love Arizona. Well the natural features at least! :D

[Kali]

13. Texas Canyon

between Benson and Willcox - about 50 miles east of Tucson. Safford is about 90 miles north and the Chiricahuas are about 50 to my east.

[begin_within]

17. Those chollas are wicked monsters.

I brushed by one accidentally near Lake Havasu and spent the next hour in agony as my friends yanked those hooks out of my arm one by one.

[Kali]

18. they can tell when you forget to show proper respect.

:rofl: <=== and just doing that will probably mean me getting caught soon!

There are different kinds - those "teddy bears" AKA jumping cholla, are some of the most dangerous. The ones in my pic stay pretty small and aren't too aggressive.

[begin_within]

19. that was the kind that got me, the jumping cholla

I swear they can sense when someone is nearby and pull them into the plant. One friend thought I was making too big of a deal out of it when I got hit, but an hour later he sat on a piece of cholla and was screaming.