After warm temps; sculpture building weather to improve ahead of winter carnival
Temperatures in the Upper Peninsula are expected to return and remain below freezing ahead of the 2023 Winter Carnival Snow Sculpture contest. A recent 8-16 day temperature forecast from the National Weather Service details a high probability that temperatures will remain below freezing for the rest of the month. Some light snowfall is also expected through the end of the month.
This change in weather is welcome news to many Michigan Tech students after warmer temperatures and rain halted progress on snow sculpture construction earlier this week. Large patches of grass became visible on campus after the Houghton area experienced a substantial melt-off beginning Sunday afternoon and Continuing through Tuesday Evening. The majority of sculptures on campus are still in their initial stages of construction and sustained relatively minimal melting damage. However, some fared worse than others. A completed sculpture, located next to the Library, sustained substantial damage and partial collapse. This sculpture was created by the group Sculptora Borealis, who are two-time national snow statue-building champions.
The Lode will be taking a look at some of the statues to come in the weeks leading up to Winter Carnival. Read the first now!
Sigma Tau Gamma and Alpha Gamma Delta’s Carnival Statue
Alpha Gamma Delta is working with Sigma Tau Gamma on College Avenue where they have put up about a dozen forms in their “bulking phase.” This is where they pile up snow in the yard gathered and trucked in from around Houghton which takes the first week or two.
Their objective is to build a statue along the Winter Carnival theme of food, which Sigma Tau Gamma is following with their statue depicting Candyland. The end of bulking will leave them with snow “bricks” spanning the entire yard with 6 forms or 24 feet in height.
Sigma Tau Gamma’s Statue co-chair Talon Cole stated that “There are lots of new guys excited to get to it and have been working hard to get as much snow stacked on the property.” With a warm week and rain upcoming there is some concern about completing their big plans. Sigma Tau Gamma’s Statue Chair Kyle Thelen commented “Even with the warm weather there is still some good snow and I believe we will have something good to show off at carnival.” For more information about Winter Carnival 2023, visit mtu.edu/winter-carnival.
