Weather Explainers

Weather Words: Sleet Vs. Freezing Rain

Freezing rain and sleet are both types of wintry precipitation, but have vastly different consequences. Read this article to figure out more.

Freezing rain and sleet are both feared during the winter months. But what are the differences between the two?

Sleet happens when snowflakes fall through a shallow layer of warm air and partially melt. The slushy drops refreeze as they hit a deeper layer of freezing air above the ground. The resulting frozen pellets bounce when they finally hit a surface.

Freezing rain is different and occurs when snowflakes fall into a deeper layer of warm air, causing them to melt entirely. If the melted raindrops encounter a very shallow layer of freezing air just above the ground, the drops supercool and then instantly turn to ice the second they touch anything that is 32 degrees or colder, such as bridges, tree limbs and power lines.

Freezing rain is much more damaging than sleet. Even a light accumulation can cause major travel problems. Heavier accumulations can lead to power outages and other serious damage to trees and power lines.

(MORE ON PRECIP: What Is Graupel? | Are Hurricanes Too Warm To Freeze?)

Hayden Marshall is a meteorologist intern and First-Year-Master’s Student at the Georgia Institute of Technology. He has been following weather content over the past three years as a Storm Spotter and weather enthusiast. He can be found on Instagram and Linkedin.