The United States is bracing for another spell of harsh winter weather as an Arctic airmass sweeps across large parts of the country, from Texas to the Carolinas and deep into the northern Midwest.
Forecasts
warn of heavy snow, ice, freezing rain and wind chills plunging well below zero, prompting alerts about hazardous travel, power outages and burst pipes. But among the more unusual warnings circulating this week is one that has seized public attention: the risk of “exploding trees.”
A social media personality and degreed meteorologist on social media issued an “exploding tree” risk for northern Michigan, including the Upper Peninsula, for Friday and Saturday, and for much of Minnesota. With temperatures in many of those regions expected to drop to at least 10°F below zero over several mornings, concerns about trees bursting open have spread rapidly online.
EXPLODING TREES are possible in the Midwest and Northern Plains on Friday and Saturday, as temperatures are forecasted to fall 20 degrees BELOW zero! pic.twitter.com/nqnoqsbHNU
— Max Velocity (@MaxVelocityWX) January 21, 2026
Scientists say there is a real winter phenomenon behind the phrase, but it is not as dramatic, dangerous or explosive as it sounds. To understand what is happening, it is important to unpack the biology of trees, the physics of freezing sap and the pressures unleashed when temperatures plunge suddenly.
Why Are Meteorologists Warning About ‘Exploding Trees’?
Forecasters expect extreme cold in the northern Midwest, with Friday and Saturday highs staying in the single digits and wind chills diving far lower. A meteorologist, Max Velocity, highlighted the possibility of “exploding trees” in Michigan and Minnesota during this temperature plunge. The warning refers not to trees literally detonating, but to the chance of sudden, loud cracking sounds from trunks and branches strained by the freeze.
Cold snaps of this intensity are capable of stressing trees that have not had adequate time to acclimatise. Much of the Upper Midwest will experience sharp overnight drops in temperature, the conditions under which trees tend to experience their most severe freeze-related damage.
What Does ‘Exploding Trees’ Actually Mean?
Scientists commonly describe this event not as an explosion but as a frost crack.
A frost crack is a vertical split in the trunk or branch of a tree that occurs when its internal fluids start to freeze. The National Forest Foundation explains that sap contains water and expands when it freezes. When the expansion happens rapidly, it puts pressure on the bark and underlying wood. If that pressure becomes too great, the bark can split open suddenly, producing a loud noise.
“During spells of extreme cold or when trees haven’t had time to acclimate, the life-sustaining sap inside a tree can begin to freeze,” the foundation said on its website. “Sap contains water, so it expands when frozen, putting pressure on the bark, which can break and create an explosion.”
According to a CNN report, John Seiler, a professor and a tree physiology specialist at Virginia Tech, examined a sweet cherry tree on campus that had developed a long jagged scar after a sudden cold drop. He described the event plainly: “The tree had broken open in the cold.”
This cracking can be startling. Scientists say the sound resembles a gunshot more than an explosion.
The National Forest Foundation notes that there have been “numerous historic and current observations” of trees appearing to explode because of this sudden internal pressure.
How Does The Science Work?
Tree sap behaves differently from pure water. It can remain liquid even at temperatures well below freezing through a process known as supercooling, as the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources explains. But when a sharp temperature drop finally does cause the sap to freeze, the expansion can be abrupt.
Bill McNee, a forest health specialist quoted by USA Today, explained that when sap freezes “it expands very quickly,” creating “a lot of physical pressure that can lead to the frost cracking appearing suddenly.”
The physics is straightforward. Doug Aubrey, a professor at the University of Georgia, told CNN, “That water expands as it freezes,” especially when the temperature drop is drastic, and “it can happen usually under very, very drastic drops in temperature.”
There are two distinct stressors at play:
- Freezing sap inside the tree, which expands and strains the wood.
- Unequal contraction of tree tissues, because the outer bark cools faster than the inner wood during sudden temperature drops.
Combined, these forces can create long, vertical splits that appear more dramatic than the event itself.
Do Trees Actually Explode?
Yes, trees can split open with a loud bang, but no, they do not explode into pieces or send debris flying.
Christopher Baird, a physics professor at West Texas A&M University, explained that although trees can “burst,” the damage tends to be limited. A tree contains hundreds or thousands of fluid channels. If one bursts, the rest remain intact, and the tree typically survives. John Seiler echoed this, saying, “It’s going to be loud, but it’s not dangerous. Wood doesn’t go flying through the area.”
In most cases, the crack becomes part of the tree’s structure. Many trees heal over time and continue to grow normally.
Are Frost Cracks Dangerous To People Or Property?
The cracking event itself is rarely hazardous, but there are secondary risks.
The main concern, experts say, is falling branches, especially during periods of heavy ice or snow accumulation. Large branches can snap under weight, posing risks to homes, vehicles and people.
Different species are more vulnerable. Longleaf pine, for instance, has longer needles that accumulate more ice than loblolly pine. Open-grown trees with wide crowns also hold more snow and ice than dense forest stands.
Frost cracks can also expose the tree to fungal infections, decay or insect damage, which may weaken it further over time.
So, Should People In Michigan And Minnesota Be Worried?
Experts consistently emphasise that “exploding trees” is an exaggerated descriptor for what is essentially a pressure crack caused by extreme weather.
These cracks are not likely to kill trees on their own. The bark splitting makes them more vulnerable, but the immediate event is not catastrophic.
What This Winter Phenomenon Tells Us
Frost cracks are a reminder of how living organisms respond to extreme weather. Trees, like people, experience stress when the temperature plunges suddenly. Their cells contract, sap freezes, and the forces inside a trunk can overwhelm the outer bark. The resulting crack may echo like a shotgun in a quiet winter forest, but the phenomenon is closer to a frozen drink can splitting than an actual explosion.
As temperatures plunge across the United States this week, residents in northern states may hear these sharp winter sounds more frequently. The noise may be striking, but the science behind it is simple.
