I understand that fog is denser mist, and that essentially, it’s all just water vapour. But so are clouds. So why is water vapour sometimes at ground level? Why is it only sometimes? Why is it usually albeit not always at night? What makes it happen? And what makes it NOT happen?
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Imagine you’re taking a hot shower, and when you step out, you see the bathroom mirror is a little cloudy. That’s because the warm water made tiny water droplets in the air. Fog and mist are a bit like that, but outside!
Fog is like a big blanket made of tiny water droplets that sits close to the ground. It happens when the air near the ground gets really cool and meets warm, moist air. This makes the tiny water droplets stick together and form fog.
Mist is like a lighter version of fog. It’s made of really tiny water droplets that float in the air. It often happens in the morning when the ground is still a bit cool from the night, and the sun starts to warm things up.
So, fog is like a thick, low cloud that hugs the ground, and mist is like a light, airy cloud that’s not as thick. They both happen because of the way the air and water mix together.
Imagine you’re taking a hot shower, and when you step out, you see the bathroom mirror is a little cloudy. That’s because the warm water made tiny water droplets in the air. Fog and mist are a bit like that, but outside!
Fog is like a big blanket made of tiny water droplets that sits close to the ground. It happens when the air near the ground gets really cool and meets warm, moist air. This makes the tiny water droplets stick together and form fog.
Mist is like a lighter version of fog. It’s made of really tiny water droplets that float in the air. It often happens in the morning when the ground is still a bit cool from the night, and the sun starts to warm things up.
So, fog is like a thick, low cloud that hugs the ground, and mist is like a light, airy cloud that’s not as thick. They both happen because of the way the air and water mix together.
Fog and mist are tiny droplets of (usually) water suspended in the air. There are enough of them and they’re packed closely enough together that you can see them.
Fog and mist are tiny droplets of (usually) water suspended in the air. There are enough of them and they’re packed closely enough together that you can see them.
So basically – warm air can hold a lot more water molecules than cold air. If you have warm water at the surface, then it is going to stay pretty warm for quite a while even if cold air comes in. The air right above the surface is warm and can hold a lot of water vapor but as it rises it cools until relative humidity hits 100% and you have fog. If you have a colder surface it’s just the opposite. You can also have fog when a warm front moves over top of a cold front and it starts to rain. The rain can evaporate before it gets to the ground and then since it’s in the colder air near the ground it will reach 100% relative humidity faster.
You see it a lot at night because bodies of water maintain their temperature quite well and will stay warmer than the cold night air. The water particles also can’t actually stick together in the air. They clump up in the air around solid particulates like dust, sea foam, pollutants, and so on. So the concentration of those in the air might effect how densely or whether fog forms.
So basically – warm air can hold a lot more water molecules than cold air. If you have warm water at the surface, then it is going to stay pretty warm for quite a while even if cold air comes in. The air right above the surface is warm and can hold a lot of water vapor but as it rises it cools until relative humidity hits 100% and you have fog. If you have a colder surface it’s just the opposite. You can also have fog when a warm front moves over top of a cold front and it starts to rain. The rain can evaporate before it gets to the ground and then since it’s in the colder air near the ground it will reach 100% relative humidity faster.
You see it a lot at night because bodies of water maintain their temperature quite well and will stay warmer than the cold night air. The water particles also can’t actually stick together in the air. They clump up in the air around solid particulates like dust, sea foam, pollutants, and so on. So the concentration of those in the air might effect how densely or whether fog forms.
Yes, it’s just clouds that happen to be at ground level.
Air can hold on to less water when it’s cold, which is why fog is most common during the coldest parts of the day.
In general, air near the surface both heats up from the energy that sunlight dumps into the ground, and also absorbs moisture, if there’s any present on the ground. This warm air rises, cools off, and can now hold on to less moisture so clouds form. Fog happens when the warm wet air cools off without rising(or when you’re somewhere the wet air can rise to, like a mountain).
Yes, it’s just clouds that happen to be at ground level.
Air can hold on to less water when it’s cold, which is why fog is most common during the coldest parts of the day.
In general, air near the surface both heats up from the energy that sunlight dumps into the ground, and also absorbs moisture, if there’s any present on the ground. This warm air rises, cools off, and can now hold on to less moisture so clouds form. Fog happens when the warm wet air cools off without rising(or when you’re somewhere the wet air can rise to, like a mountain).
Fog is literally a cloud at/near ground level. The water droplets are so small that they’re much more affected by air current than gravity. Most is slightly larger water droplets, still small enough to be significantly influenced by air currents, but starting to become large enough to be readily pulled to the ground by gravity. As these droplets get larger (naturally occuring), they’ll turn to rain, where they’re so large they’re primarily influenced by gravity, with air currents only mildly affecting them.
Fog is literally a cloud at/near ground level. The water droplets are so small that they’re much more affected by air current than gravity. Most is slightly larger water droplets, still small enough to be significantly influenced by air currents, but starting to become large enough to be readily pulled to the ground by gravity. As these droplets get larger (naturally occuring), they’ll turn to rain, where they’re so large they’re primarily influenced by gravity, with air currents only mildly affecting them.
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