Little foggy this AM
By Sean Downey on March 3, 2012, 9:40am
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As I look out the window on this dreary March morning, it is quite foggy up on the hill here in Waterbury. Good day to stay inside I suppose. A cold front to our west will swing through the region today, bringing with it occasional showers. Ahead of the front, warmer air is riding northward; our temperatures today will rise into the 50s.
So what causes fog? The short answer is that the ambient air becomes completely saturated with water, and fog forms. Technically speaking, the air temperatures cools until it reaches the dew point (temperature at which the air is completely saturated) and condensation occurs. Here in Connecticut there are a couple ways this can happen. On clear nights with calm winds, the Earth radiates heat into space, allowing the air temperature to cool to the dew point, allowing condensation to occur. This is usually the type of fog that forms in valleys.
Another type of fog is called advection fog. This fog is caused by warm, moist air flowing over the cold snow. As it rides over the snow, it is cooled to until it reaches the dew point, and fog is formed. On days like today when there is snow on the ground, this is called “snow eater fog” because as the air condenses to form fog, it releases heat which helps to melt the snow below. Incidentally, this process is called sublimation, the process by which a solid is converted into the gaseous phase of matter with no intermediate liquid phase.
Regardless of the type of fog outside my window right now, I am saddened to see what little snow there is melt, knowing this is likely the last snow of the season. At the same time I am ready for the warmer temperatures and sunshine. Bring on Spring.
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