Visibility is the most important element in the mix, said meteorologist Matt Kelsch, with the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research. "Usually, it takes that strength of wind—[35 miles (56 kilometers) an hour]—to pick enough snow off the ground to reduce visibility that much," he said.

"[But] it doesn't always have to be snowing to be a blizzard," Kelsch added. In the U.S., areas of the Great Plains and western states can get something called ground blizzards: storms in which high winds pick up snow from the ground and whip it around, greatly reducing visibility.

Will blizzards become more frequent in the future as a response to climate change? That's difficult to know for sure, said Kelsch, but warming oceans may increase