Dangane da yanayin zafi da zafi na iska, dusar ƙanƙara ta haifar da ɗimbin siffofi daban-daban. Turin ruwa yana ɗaukar ƙananan ƙurar ƙura, waɗanda ke yin ƙarfi zuwa lu'ulu'u na kankara. Kwayoyin ruwa sun yi layi a cikin tsari mai kauri (hixagonal). Sakamakon wannan tsari shine kyakkyawan kyakkyawan dusar ƙanƙara wanda kowa ke ƙauna tun lokacin yaro.
Sabuwar dusar ƙanƙara da aka kafa ta fi iska nauyi, yana sa ta faɗo. Fadowa ƙasa ta cikin iska mai ɗanɗano, tururin ruwa da yawa yana daskarewa kuma yana rufe saman lu'ulu'u. Tsarin daskarewa dusar ƙanƙara yana da tsari sosai. Ko da yake duk dusar ƙanƙara tana da hexagonal, sauran cikakkun bayanai na ƙirar su sun bambanta. Kamar yadda aka ambata a sama, wannan yana shafar yanayin zafi da zafi wanda dusar ƙanƙara ke tasowa. Wasu haɗuwa na waɗannan abubuwa biyu suna taimakawa wajen samar da alamu tare da dogon "allura", yayin da wasu ke zana mafi kyawun alamu.
(Jericho, Vermont) ya zama mutum na farko da ya ɗauki hoton dusar ƙanƙara ta amfani da na'urar gani da ido da ke makale da kyamara. Tarin hotunansa na 5000 ya ba mutane mamaki da nau'ikan lu'ulu'u na dusar ƙanƙara da ba a iya misaltuwa.
A shekara ta 1952, masana kimiyya daga Ƙungiyar Ƙungiyoyin Ƙira ta Duniya (IACS) sun ɓullo da tsarin da ya rarraba dusar ƙanƙara zuwa siffofi goma na asali. Har yanzu ana amfani da tsarin IACS a yau, kodayake akwai ƙarin nagartattun tsarin. Kenneth Libbrecht, farfesa a fannin kimiyyar lissafi a Cibiyar Fasaha ta California, ya yi bincike mai zurfi game da yadda kwayoyin ruwa ke zama cikin lu'ulu'u na dusar ƙanƙara. A cikin bincikensa, ya gano cewa mafi rikitarwa alamu suna canzawa a cikin yanayi mai laushi. Busassun iskan dusar ƙanƙara yakan sami mafi sauƙi alamu. Bugu da ƙari, dusar ƙanƙara da ta faɗo a yanayin zafi ƙasa -22C galibi sun ƙunshi tsari masu sauƙi, yayin da ƙaƙƙarfan tsarin ke tattare da dusar ƙanƙara mai zafi.
A cewar wani masani a Cibiyar Nazarin yanayi ta ƙasa a Boulder, Colorado, matsakaicin dusar ƙanƙara ya ƙunshi . David Phillips, babban jami'in kula da yanayin yanayi a cibiyar kula da muhalli a Kanada, ya lura cewa adadin dusar ƙanƙara da ya faɗo tun bayan wanzuwar duniya ya kai 10 sai sifili 34.