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Home » Outdoor Fun » Weather 101 » The Mystery of Hoar Frost

The Mystery of Hoar Frost

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Bright sunshine awakens you on a cold winter morning. There’s not a cloud in the sky. But as you look out the window, you see the ground, the trees, the cars – everything, covered with white.

It didn’t snow, so where did all that white stuff come from?

Hoar Frost, or sometimes Hoarfrost, can be a beautiful part of a cold winter morning.

It generally forms when the tree branches or the grass or your car has a temperature below the Dew Point (the temperature at which the air is 100% saturated – giving a relative humidity of 100%).

hoar_frost.jpg

When air comes in contact with these very cold things, the water vapor can no longer remain “invisible.” If the temperature is above freezing, condensation takes place (water changes from a gas to a liquid) and dew forms. If the temperature is below freezing, the water vapor skips the gas to liquid transition and goes straight from gas to solid, a process called sublimation. That’s when we see hoarfrost.

The official definition of hoarfrost from the National Weather Service is:
“A deposit of interlocking crystals formed by direct sublimation on objects, usually those of small diameter freely exposed to the air, such as tree branches, plants, wires, poles, etc.”


The Opposite Of Hoar Frost

Incidentally, the process in reverse, solid to gas is also called sublimation. That happens when an icicle doesn’t melt, it just disappears. The ice sublimes. Like liquid water evaporates, or goes from liquid to gas, frozen water sublimes, or goes from solid to gas. It is strange to me that with liquid water we have two words, evaporation and condensation, to describe the two transitions. With frozen water, we have one word, sublimation, to describe both processes … vapor to solid and solid to vapor.

Maybe we should start a campaign to come up with a new word. Icimation or something. Any suggestions?

Weatherman Tim
Weatherman Tim

I'm a TV weatherman in south Texas. I get blamed for the bad weather, but I also get credit for the beautiful days. I absolutely love my job!

www.krgv.com/story/30586116/bio-tim-smith
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Filed Under: Outdoor Fun, Weather 101 Tagged With: Clouds, Frost, Humidity, snow, temperature, wind, winter

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About Us

JoshuaI'm a weather geek from Florida who's been studying meteorology and watching weather patterns for years! I enjoy sharing little-known facts and fun stuff about the weather. I especially like sharing interesting details about weather events and conditions that can affect you... and how to prepare for Mother Nature's ever-changing weather patterns.

Joshua: View My Blog Posts

Weatherman TimI'm a TV weatherman in south Texas. I get blamed for the bad weather, but I also get credit for the beautiful days. I absolutely love my job!

Weatherman Tim: View My Blog Posts

LynnetteAs a homeowner, I primarily write about weather safety tips that everyone should know in order to protect their home and family during major weather events. I especially like to share seasonal "outside the box" ideas that most wouldn't think of in the Spring, Summer, Winter, and Fall. The weather events I've personally experienced include: Hurricanes (while living in Florida), Tornadoes (while living in Indiana, Texas, and Tennessee), Earthquakes (while visiting California), Blizzards (while living in New York and Indiana), and Flooding (while living in Tennessee).

Lynnette: View My Blog Posts

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