MILAN - Good news for lovers of skiing. In a year in which high-altitude snowfall is late to come and temperatures are higher than usual, from Trentino comes a "Made in Italy" invention that enables water to be transformed into snowflakes. An innovation that allows the mountain tourism sector, as well as other sectors, to reap many benefits.
The invention
After five years of experimentation, Francesco Besana, an engineer from Bergamo, has found a mathematical formula that transforms water into snow even with outside temperatures between 0 and 5 degrees. In order to do so, a device was constructed that operates by exploiting the principle of the so-called "triple point of water", which is a physical state that can be obtained only in certain temperature and pressure conditions, where water is present at the same time in solid, liquid and gas form. In such conditions, water crystallises and becomes snow, ready to be shot out by snow cannons.
Polyvalent model
For now the tool is just a prototype, it feeds on solar energy and produces snow without the use of chemical additives. Experts believe that the innovation can have important repercussions not only for mountain tourism but also for many other sectors where the availability of permanent snow is of enormous importance. Indeed, amongst the first companies to contact the inventors, was a company that produces winter tyres, for which snow out of season is very useful, to test tyres before marketing them. But the model can also be useful for the fish market (preservation of fish) and for physiotherapy (cold snow is an excellent remedy against lactic acid).
by editorial staff
