TORONTO – The whirlpool of frigid, dense Arctic air placing much of North America in a deep freeze – now known continent-wide as a “polar vortex” – has highlighted another phrase in our vocabulary. Steam fog.
READ MORE: Arctic cold engulfs the country
A YouTube video captures the phenomenon over Lake Michigan.
The polar vortex drifted into Illinois on Monday, moving over the warmer lake water and transforming the water vapor into fog, causing steam to rise.
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While the YouTube video calls the phenomenon a “steam devil” it is actually “steam fog.”
A steam devil is similar to a waterspout or tornado, but forms with cold, Arctic air.
According to the YouTube user, the video was taken over Navy Pier in Chicago yesterday, when the wind chill was -50 degrees Fahrenheit.
READ MORE: Why extreme weather stops us cold
On Monday, NASA captured images of the fog forming over the Great Lakes.
According to NASA, the false-colour image (second below) helps illustrate the difference between the snow (orange), water clouds (white) formed entirely of liquid water drops, and mixed clouds (peach), which “contain both water droplets and ice crystals.”
With files from Global News’ Nicole Mortillaro
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