Hoar frost in Layham

On a cold clear morning, fog appeared as if by magic, and just as we were having breakfast. I returned later from a morning walk, and the trees certainly seemed to be turning white, but not to to any  great degree - until we looked closer as the sun started to poke through the mist.
Suddenly, it seemed, the world had turned white! So, armed with cameras we headed out to have a closer look at this beautiful world that had descended.


The view of the trees in front of our bungalow with a brilliant blue sky as a backdrop to this magical Hoar Frost



Hoar frost forms when the water vapour in the air comes into contact with solid surfaces that are already below freezing point. Ice crystals form immediately, and the ice continues to grow as more water vapour is frozen. On a still night, it can grow well on tree branches, where the surface temperature is unlikely to rise above zero for many hours.
The size of the frost that forms is dependent on how much water vapour is available to ‘feed’ the ice crystals as they grow. Hoar frost has a very distinctive appearance as it forms hair-like or feathery structures as it grows. 




The Layham Playing Field, looking toward the Conservation area. All these images were taken within 200 meters of our bungalow.


Ice on the Brett and the mist dispersing in the background.


 A mist view toward our bungalow


It is difficult to appreciate, but this white wonderland completely disappeared within the hour!



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