MANHATTAN, Kan. -- Strong winds coupled with just the right snow conditions Dec. 18 to produce nature-generated snowballs and "muffs" in Russell County, Kan.

The weird-looking phenomena ranged in size from baseballs to 30-gallon drums. They showed up on city streets, golf courses, and other smooth surfaces countywide -- including the towns of Lucas, Wilson, Luray and Russell.

John Stannard, one of the county’s K-State Research and Extension agents, called people across Kansas, trying to find an explanation for the "self-rolling" snowballs. Laughter was his major response. Or, "This is a joke, right?"

At his request, however, State of Kansas climatologist Mary Knapp investigated and found other documented cases -- in Alaska and Antarctica.

"Ours are like the ‘snow rollers’ in Alaska. To form, they need high winds, temperatures around the freezing mark, and fluffy snow that’s falling onto ice or packed snow. Under those conditions, big flakes almost bounce and slide when they hit ground, picking up more snow with each touchdown," Knapp said. "Then, when they get too heavy, they start to roll -- leaving a wake like you see when rolling balls for a snowman."

The smallest snow rollers often look like a comma or marble. The biggest often look like a fat carpet roll or misshapen ball, she said. But, wind and rolling can sculpt out a wild variety of shapes.

Knapp has posted Stannard’s photos of Kansas "rollers" on the state Weather Data Library’s Web page at www.oznet.ksu.edu/wdl  under "Weird Weather."

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K-State Research and Extension is a short name for the Kansas State University Agricultural Experiment Station and Cooperative Extension Service, a program designed to generate and distribute useful knowledge for the well-being of Kansans. Supported by county, state, federal and private funds, the program has county Extension offices, experiment fields, area Extension offices and research centers statewide. Its headquarters is on the K-State campus in Manhattan.