Why Does Salt Stop Snow?

Imagine ice is like a group of kids holding hands tightly. They stand still and do not move. When you pour salt on the ice, it is like throwing balls at their hands. The kids let go of each other because they are busy catching the balls! Now the ice turns into slippery water that cars can drive on.

Ice melts when it gets warm, right? But salt makes ice melt even if it is very cold outside. This happens because salt changes how the ice particles behave. Water usually freezes at zero degrees. Salt lowers this freezing number so the water stays liquid longer.

Salt works great until it gets really, really cold. If it gets too cold, like below twenty-two degrees Fahrenheit, even salt cannot help much. The ice becomes too strong for the salt to break up. But on most winter days, salt is the hero that keeps roads safe.

This simple trick saves cars from sliding and helps people get home safely during snowstorms.