The map shows the mean total precipitation in the month of January. January precipitation across Canada is mainly in the form of snow. Throughout much of the interior and the north, precipitation amounts are generally less than 20 mm and, in the high Arctic, as little as a few millimetres. The west coast receives heavy precipitation in the form of rain at low elevations and mainly snow at higher elevations. For coastal British Columbia, this is the rainy season. On Canada’s east coast, where cold continental air masses clash with the warmer air masses from the Atlantic, there is a mixture of rain and snow, with rain dominating close to the Atlantic and snow becoming more prevalent to the northwest, in southern Quebec and Labrador. The snow belt east of Lake Superior and Lake Huron is clearly visible, especially around Georgian Bay.