What exactly is sea smoke and why does it form?
Jan 17, 2024 10:31AM ● By Content Editor
Photo: Laura Durenberger-Grunow
By Laura Durenberger-Grunow - Boreal Community Media - January 17, 2024
The cold temperatures of late have created the perfect conditions for locals and visitors to witness a beautiful phenomenon over Lake Superior in person or through photos.
Steam fog, frost smoke, sea mist, or as many people in Cook County and along the North Shore call it, sea smoke, occurs when a very cold air mass drifts over "warm" water and forms fog. In recent instances, actual air temps have been below zero (with the wind chill making it feel even colder), while the lake's water temperature has been hovering around 38 degrees Fahrenheit.
If you're looking for a more official explanation of the process, the American Meteorological Society states that "No matter what the nature of the vapor source (warm water, industrial combustion exhaust, exhaled breath), its equilibrium vapor pressure is greater than that corresponding to the colder air; thus, the water vapor, upon becoming mixed with and cooled by the cold air, rapidly condenses. It should be noted that this mechanism never allows the fog to actually reach the vapor source."
For more information about sea smoke, visit the American Meteorological Society website here.
By Laura Durenberger-Grunow - Boreal Community Media - January 17, 2024
The cold temperatures of late have created the perfect conditions for locals and visitors to witness a beautiful phenomenon over Lake Superior in person or through photos.
Steam fog, frost smoke, sea mist, or as many people in Cook County and along the North Shore call it, sea smoke, occurs when a very cold air mass drifts over "warm" water and forms fog. In recent instances, actual air temps have been below zero (with the wind chill making it feel even colder), while the lake's water temperature has been hovering around 38 degrees Fahrenheit.
If you're looking for a more official explanation of the process, the American Meteorological Society states that "No matter what the nature of the vapor source (warm water, industrial combustion exhaust, exhaled breath), its equilibrium vapor pressure is greater than that corresponding to the colder air; thus, the water vapor, upon becoming mixed with and cooled by the cold air, rapidly condenses. It should be noted that this mechanism never allows the fog to actually reach the vapor source."
For more information about sea smoke, visit the American Meteorological Society website here.
