Are snowflakes an example of fractals?

No. About the only thing we know of that approximates to a theoretical fractal is the sea. A fractal is, amongst other things, a design that appears the same at any level of magnification. read more

They are examples of fractals only in the way that, say, the edge of a ruler is a line segment. The ruler edge is not really that straight. A snowflake is self-similar only through a few dimensions. To be a true fractal a snowflake would have to be self-similar through an infinite number of dimensions. read more

Indeed, at the end of the day the real reason about fractals in snowflakes is to be discovered. As yet, fractal geometry is a far better approximation to understanding such phenomena - as it has been largely shown in the literature. read more