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Science & Technology

Scientists create world's smallest snowman

By T.K. Randall
December 23, 2016 · Comment icon 13 comments

The snowman can only be seen through a microscope. Image Credit: Western Nanofabrication Facility
A team at the University of Western Ontario have managed to build a snowman a mere three microns tall.
The ridiculously tiny festive creation, which is so small that it is even dwarfed by the width of a human hair, was put together by scientists at Western's Nanofabrication Facility.

The snowman is made from microscopic silica spheres created using a technique known as electron beam lithography which uses a focused beam of electrons to draw custom shapes.
The eyes and mouth were carved out using a focused ion beam while its nose and arms were carefully constructed from small amounts of platinum.

The microscopic sculpture now holds the record for being the world's smallest snowman.

In contrast, the world's largest snowman, 'Olympia', which was built in Maine back in 2008, was a whopping 37 meters tall and was comprised of more than seven million kilograms of snow.

Source: London Free Press | Comments (13)




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Recent comments on this story
Comment icon #4 Posted by brlesq1 7 years ago
So now that they've reached the pinnacle of their careers, what's next for them?
Comment icon #5 Posted by DieChecker 7 years ago
My daughter would say.... "AHHHH... He's so cute!!!!".
Comment icon #6 Posted by toast 7 years ago
To carry on and to never get influenced by ignorance.
Comment icon #7 Posted by IamthemanfromNantucket 7 years ago
Snowman Zygote
Comment icon #8 Posted by danielost 7 years ago
you forgot to add it is smaller than a snowflake.  
Comment icon #9 Posted by seeder 7 years ago
   Its way way smaller than a snowflake A human hair is about 75 microns across its width...the snowman was just 3 microns
Comment icon #10 Posted by freetoroam 7 years ago
There is, but carrot shaped nose is made of platinum.  This is misleading as it is not made out of snow at all so should not be called a snowman, but called  a micron silica man.
Comment icon #11 Posted by danielost 7 years ago
it won't melt.  but don't sneeze, you'll never find it.  
Comment icon #12 Posted by freetoroam 7 years ago
True, it will not melt. But someone did try to sell one which does, lol: http://metro.co.uk/2014/12/22/melted-snowman-for-sale-on-ebay-nice-one-4996188/
Comment icon #13 Posted by coolguy 7 years ago
Thats cool, good job


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