Did you notice steam coming from the Great Miami River?
It was a sight that was hard to miss during this Arctic blast. Bitterly cold air is the main ingredient to this phenomenon, said Storm Center 7 Meteorologist Kirstie Zontini. The steam you are seeing coming off the river is steam fog, which is sometimes referred to as sea smoke.
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The reason it develops is because of the major temperature difference between the cold air and the river’s warmer water. The cold and dry air moving over the warm, moist river water forces some of the water to evaporate. This creates a thin layer of warmer air.
The warm air then starts to mix with the cold air above it, becoming saturated and condensing into fog. You will notice that the fog that develops is actually located slightly above the river's surface.
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If you have a photo of the steam fog from a river or lake, share it with us on Facebook or Twitter using the hashtag #iWitness7
