Freezing rain is a type of precipitation that begins as snow at higher altitude, falling from a cloud towards earth, melts completely on its way down while passing through a layer of air above freezing temperature, and then encounters a layer below freezing at lower level to become supercooled. This water will then freeze upon impact with any object it encounters. The ice can accumulate to a thickness of several centimetres, called glaze ice. The METAR code for freezing rain is FZRA. (see freezing drizzle for another way of forming ice accretion)