Abstract: Snow is produced by supplying water to the blades of a rotating fan. The blades are arranged in a plurality of sets of different length blades, each set having a relatively short blade, an intermediate length blade, and a relatively long blade. The quantities of water supplied to the blades and the speed of rotation of the fan are such that water spreads in a film over each blade toward its trailing edge and toward its tip. A proportion of the water discharged from each blade is atomized and entrained in the aerosol produced by rotation of the fan blades, whereas another proportion of the water discharged from each blade is cascaded in a vortex from one blade to the next following blade. The relative lengths of the blades are such that water cascaded from the tip of the longest blade in a leading set of blades impinges directly onto the longest blade of the immediately following set of blades.

Abstract: An impeller is connected to a liquid-powered motor to be driven thereby. The impeller is of a type capable of moving a large volume of air of the order of as much as several thousand cubic meters per minute, which is ten or more times the volume of liquid used to power the motor. Some or all of the liquid applied to the motor to be transformed into mechanical energy is carried by a conduit to a point where it can suitably enter the air stream provided by the impeller. The conduit can carry the liquid to a point between the motor and the impeller so as to be picked up along with air and included in the stream forcibly projected from the impeller. Alternatively, the conduit can be routed around the impeller to discharge the liquid into the already formed air stream.