Social media posts warning of "exploding trees" in subzero temperatures are mischaracterizing a phenomenon known as frost cracks. Frost cracks form when water inside trees freezes and expands. As a ...

If you’ve been online lately, you may have seen alarming headlines claiming that “exploding trees” are waking people up across the country. The reports describe a loud bang in the middle of the night, ...

Frost cracks appear as vertical splits in the trunk of a tree and are the result of plant tissue expansion and contraction.

It turns out that trees can actually explode when temperatures drop. Trees can explode during extreme cold due to sap expansion when it freezes. Oak, maple, and fruit trees with high moisture are most ...

As we head into the weekend, a major winter storm system is going to slide some of the coldest air we’ve felt in years right over Michigan - and we’re going to be in a deep freeze for a few days. How ...

This weekend, much of the United States is expecting to be hit with a polar vortex with extreme cold — cold that's icy, bone-chilling and … explosive? As people prepare for these frigid temperatures, ...

Severe cold temperatures hitting much of the country this week could branch out − literally. As people brace for the winter weather, some social media posts in recent days have warned of the chance ...

Severe cold temperatures hitting much of the country this week could branch out − literally. As people brace for the winter weather, some social media posts in recent days have warned of the chance of ...

John Seiler was strolling across Virginia Tech’s campus with his students Thursday morning when something stopped them in their tracks: a sweet cherry tree with an unusual jagged scar running along ...

A viral social media post warned Midwesterners about the dangers of "exploding trees" as extreme cold weather hits the region. But is it true? Do trees really explode during very cold temperatures? It ...