Click to enlarge

Hot water meets cold air

Tools

This story should be flagged for moderation. Please choose from one of the following options:

Science at home

by dfglandon (Subscribe)

Posted on: Jan 15, 2009 at 2:09 PM CDT

Channel: Weather

Even if school is out, you can still have a little fun with science. We have all seen what happens when you throw hot water into very cold air, but what happens when the water is cold? My son took a little time today to find out. He put one cup of water in Pyrex measuring cup and heated it in the microwave for 2 minutes. Carefully he took the glass out of the microwave and went outside. Note he did not stay outside unbundled beyond the amount of time it took to throw the water in the air. As you see once it was thrown in the air, it turned to steam.
He then took one cup of cold water from the tap and placed it into the Pyrex measuring cup. Before he threw it in the air, he predicted that it would be a big chunk of ice before it hit the ground. Much to his surprise, when he threw the cold water in the air, it did not freeze. We did the experiment twice to make sure we got the same results, and in each trial we got the same results.
So for the kids reading this, why did the hot water turn into steam as it hit the air? Why did the cold water not turn into a chunk of ice before it hit the ground? Write your answers below. Remember if you perform this experiment please have the permission of your parents, be very careful when handling the hot water, and always bundle up in the cold

Axle says ...

On Thursday, Jan 15 at 8:29 PM

Commenter

Maybe Al Gore could answer that one?

Greg says ...

On Friday, Jan 16 at 9:56 AM

Commenter

I'll give you a hint it has to do with the vapor pressure of water at different temperatures

Anonymous says ...

On Sunday, Jan 18 at 3:31 PM

Commenter

Cause god wanted it that way?

Carol Hachlinski says ...

On Monday, Jan 19 at 1:48 PM

Commenter

It seems that the air turns into steam when you throw hot water into cold air. However, it has been reported by some that instead of turning into steam and vaporizing, the water actually turns into snow crystals. What causes the crystals to form?

Add a comment

Name:

Comment: 250 Characters Left

By submitting a comment to this web site, I affirm that I have read, understand, agree to and shall abide by the following rules and regulations as a term and condition of all comments which I may post. As terms and conditions of using this KCRG web site, I agree that I am fully responsible for the contents of all statements which I make. To the best of my knowledge, all such statements are true, fair, and accurate. I shall not post any statements which attack a person’s integrity or moral character, expose a person to public hatred, contempt or ridicule, deprive a person of the benefits of public confidence and social dealings, or injure a person in the maintenance of that person’s business. I shall not knowingly post content that violates the copyright, trademark, patent or other intellectual property right of a third person. I shall not post content that is false, liable, defamatory, obscene, abusive, that violates a person’s right to privacy, that otherwise violates any applicable local, state, national or international law or that is otherwise inappropriate. I acknowledge that if I post a comment which violates this policy that an offended person to whom comments are directed may have a right through judicial process to determine my identity and make a claim against me for damages. I agree that I shall indemnify KCRG, its employees, agents, representatives and affiliates from any and all expenses KCRG may incur as a result of comments I post which violate this policy, claims and/or damages, including but not limited to reasonable attorney’s fees and costs. KCRG is not responsible for the contents posted or anything arising out of the use of the contents or other interaction and has no obligation or duty to monitor or control any posting but does reserve the right to screen, refuse to post, remove, or edit user generated comment.

I have read and agree to the terms