And the locos, right, will be able to cope with 'fluffy snow'.

Outside, fluffy snow was falling.

Having pushed our cross-country skiing instructor's patience to the limit yesterday, we fully expected to spend most of the next three hours falling over in the deep, fluffy snow.

However, we know very little about them - why they happen or how something made of light and fluffy snow can produce a force so powerful that it can flatten villages.

Even the fluffiest snow has mass, and snow typically settles under its own weight after time.