The Snowbelt is a North American region, much of which lies downwind of the Great Lakes, where heavy snowfall is particularly common on predominantly eastern and southern shores of the Great Lakes. Near the Great Lakes, lake-effect snow is caused by cold air picking up moisture while crossing the lake and then releasing it as snow when the air cools over land. The lakes produce lake effect snow and continuous cloudy skies throughout the winter months, as long as air temperatures are colder than the lake water temperatures or until the lakes freeze over.…
