Snow crystal formation experiments at Kitami Institute of Technology as a course element in “Experiments of Fundamental Physics”

Abstract

Snow crystal formation experiments have been conducted as an element of the “Experiments of Fundamental Physics” course at Kitami Institute of Technology (KIT) since October 2006. The course is a required subject for freshmen at KIT. Most of the freshmen (410 persons per year) have performed the experiment, with a total of 1000 students by January 2009. The remarkable feature of this experiment is that eight students can simultaneously form snow crystals using eight sets of experimental apparatus. A commercial “experimental apparatus for snow crystal formation” product from Toyo Engineering Works Ltd. was used. This paper describes the experimental apparatus, the snow crystals and experimental conditions at KIT. This paper may assist readers interested in introducing experiments in snow crystal formation into classrooms in schools and universities.