The honeymoon between Maryland and snow is over.

For the first day or so, the snow delighted us. Then, the ice took hold. People battled for parking spaces, and schools closed across the region as temperatures plunged well below freezing.

It’s been more than two weeks since a winter storm dropped around a foot of snow on parts of Maryland. The aftermath earned its own tag on Baltimore’s subreddit, “snowtastrophe,” as people vented about the ice left behind by overwhelmed shovelers and plows.

Despite cleanup efforts, snow, ice and frozen dirt remain piled high at many intersections, along sidewalks and in parking lots.

Now, many of us are wondering: When will the snow and ice go away?

That’s the ”million-dollar question,“ said Sinéad Louise Farrell, a glaciologist and professor at the University of Maryland.

The answer: It’s still going to be a few weeks.

When will snow and ice melt?

The storm was an unusual weather event for the region, Farrell said. Cold Arctic air moved south in a phenomenon known as Arctic oscillation, reaching parts of the mid-Atlantic and as far south as Texas. The cold air mixed with warmer masses from the South, resulting in an intense storm, Farrell said.

The winter precipitation Maryland saw on Jan. 25 and after was different from the soft, fresh and powdery snow the region commonly gets, Farrell said. The key difference was density.

What we got is more compacted and closer to ice. The Internet is calling it “snowcrete,” but glaciologists have a name for it: névé — or snow that melts partially, then refreezes. It typically occurs in glaciers.

Névé is five times more compacted than most freshly fallen snow, Farrell said. That means it takes “five times more energy to get that ice to convert from solid ice to liquid water.” And because névé is denser, it’s harder for heat to get through it.

The freezing temperatures we’ve experienced recently don’t negate predictions from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for a warmer and drier winter overall. Both things can be true, Farrell said, adding that the warming of the atmosphere makes severe storms more common.

The good news is that the Arctic air mass will retreat by the end of this week, Farrell said.

Temperatures will slowly climb above the 30s as a warm front arrives in the region, with a high of 41 on Tuesday and 43 on Wednesday, according to the National Weather Service.

It’s a good time to break the ice and attempt some more shoveling, said Samantha Timmers, a meteorologist for the weather service’s Baltimore/Washington office.

But we need temperatures to stay above freezing overnight, Farrell said, and it’s unclear when evenings will warm up.

Her guess is that snow and ice on travel lanes will start to melt this week, but the mounds of snow and ice will stick around for a few more weeks — at least through February.

And while the dirt does make the snow even less pleasant, it’s actually helping to accelerate the melting, Farrell said. White reflects sunlight, so the heat and energy from the sun is being reflected away. Anything darker than snow — leaves, litter and soil, for example — will absorb more heat from the sun and make the surrounding ice warmer.

Farrell understands why some are frustrated with how long it’s taken to clear roads, but she stressed that the storm was a historic event and people need to be patient.

“That’s what I’m trying to tell myself, at least, when I’m stuck in traffic,” she said.