Ice fog: Difference between revisions
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[[File:PostcardVirginiaCityNVPogonipCirca1907.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Ice fog in [[Virginia City, Nevada]], from an early 20th-century postcard]] |
[[File:PostcardVirginiaCityNVPogonipCirca1907.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Ice fog in [[Virginia City, Nevada]], from an early 20th-century postcard]] |
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'''Ice fog''' is a type of [[fog]] consisting of fine [[ice]] crystals suspended in the air. It can happen only in cold areas of the world since [[water]] can remain liquid down to -40 °C (-40 °F). It should be |
'''Ice fog''' is a type of [[fog]] consisting of fine [[ice]] crystals suspended in the air. It can happen only in cold areas of the world since [[water]] can remain liquid down to -40 °C (-40 °F). It should be distinguished from [[diamond dust]], a [[precipitation (meteorology)|precipitation]] of sparse ice crystal falling from clear sky.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://amsglossary.allenpress.com/glossary/search?id=ice-fog1|title=AMS Glossary - Ice fog|accessdate=2009-02-14}}</ref> |
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== In the United States == |
== In the United States == |
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Revision as of 08:08, 6 December 2009
Ice fog is a type of fog consisting of fine ice crystals suspended in the air. It can happen only in cold areas of the world since water can remain liquid down to -40 °C (-40 °F). It should be distinguished from diamond dust, a precipitation of sparse ice crystal falling from clear sky.[1]
In the United States
In western United States ice fog is commonly known as pogonip.[citation needed] It occurs very rarely during cold winter spells, usually in deep mountain valleys. Ice fog can be quite common in Alaska, since the temperature frequently drops below -40 °C (-40 °F) in the winter months. Pogonip only forms under the right conditions, the humidity has to be near 100% as the air temperature drops to well below 0 °C (32 °F), allowing ice crystals to form in the air. The ice crystals will then settle onto surfaces.
The name pogonip is an English adaptation of the Shoshone word meaning "cloud" (payinappih). The English-speaking settlers who encountered this unpleasant and sometimes scary phenomenon when they went out West in the 1800s needed a word for it and they borrowed it from local populations.[2]
A folk etymology says that pogonip means "white death" because the pogonip fog is so thick you can't even see your hand. Go out in it and you'll be lost in seconds. If it lingers you'll die of starvation or exposure. Breathing pogonip can damage your lungs thus the term white death.[citation needed]
In The Old Farmer's Almanac, in the calendar for December, the phrase "Beware the Pogonip" regularly appears. In Smoke Bellew Jack London described Pogonip which happened to main characters, killing one of them.
In Siberia
In Siberia ice fog is somewhat common, especially in Sakha Republic, Russian Federation. The city of Yakutsk is famous for its ice fogs. The water vapour in the air freezes when there's no wind and produces a thick ice fog. When a person walks through this fog, behind him or her a completely visible tunnel appears, and children going to school often play a game trying to guess who has just passed (here our fat schoolmate, there that tall teacher...) [3]
References
- ^ "AMS Glossary - Ice fog". Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ "Pogonip - Definition from the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary". Retrieved 2009-02-14.
- ^ "-46°" (in Italian). Retrieved 2009-02-14.