You've heard of lake-effect snow in the Great Lakes. Check out what a larger sea and bitter cold air helped to generate in parts of Japan.

Sign up for the Morning Brief email newsletter to get weekday updates from The Weather Channel and our meteorologists.Without the images, it might be hard to wrap your mind around the amount of snow blanketing the island of Hokkaido in northern Japan.

A city in Japan's Hokkaido sees almost4 feet of snow fall in only 12 hours:: saron17 via Instagram:: Obihiro, Japan:: 5, 2025The Meteorological Agency said a powerful low pressure system and moist air caused heavy snow to persist in Obihiro city in Hokkaido from Monday (February 3) night,