what is the content of the aerosol trails left in the sky by aircraft?

Question

and why do I hear nothing about it in the press?

Answer 1

Water vapor. Yep. The press would have no reason to be interested in water vapor.

Answer 2

Burned hydrocarbons release hydrogen, which mixes with the air. Two molecules of hydrogen and one molecule of oxygen blend to make water. At higher levels and cooler temerpatures due to adiabatic conditions, the water condenses or freezes as soon as it forms.

In particularly humid areas, it's possible to for the simple deceleration of air over wings and around propellers to cool the air enough for water to condense and leave a trail.

They're technically known as condensation trails, abbreviated to "contrails."

You don't hear about it in the media because you're far more likely to be injured, killed or poisoned with a loaf of bread than you are with water in the atmosphere. It's a non-incident.

Oddly, the median temperature of the lower 48 actually rose a degree or two in the wake of 9/11/01's No Fly order.

Answer 3

100% ice crystals. The atmosphere contains the right amount of moisture to allow the passing craft to add enough more to saturate the air. When that happens, it freezes instantly due to the well below freezing temperatures.
Besides contrails formed from the moisture in the burning fuel, there are aerodynamic contrails created by the shape of the airfoils. In old WWII movies, you would see these forming at low altitudes behind the gullwings of the F4U Corsair.

Answer 4

You are probably referring to the vapour trails that are left behind when water evapourates in the warmer air exhausted by the aircrafts engines at certain altitudes.
You don't hear about it in the press, because they just aren't interested in that sort of thing unless it's comming out of Paris Hilton's, or Lynsay Lohan's butt.

Answer 5

It's purely water vapor.

The reason that you don't hear anything about it in the press is that it's not newsworthy. When was the last time you saw a headline, "Steam Escapes Pedestrians Mouths!" on a winter Chicago day?? I rest my case!

Answer 6

They are not "aerosol" trails but Contrails. It is just hot, humid air that mixes with the cold air higher in the atmosphere.

Answer 7

when an aircraft is flying high where temp is below -38* c then some amount of water vapour is left by the engines!
this vapour further cools and forms ice and makes streams

Answer 8

Water vapor, you dont hear about in in the press because its not important

Answer 9

acceptable, i can't write with my left hand in any respect! yet I do an incredible style of issues with my left hand, interestingly i'm left hand eye co-ordinated. Or acceptable, whichever is the different of what acceptable handers could be! I open doors, carry luggage and do maximum stuff with my left hand.

Answer 10

they're called contrails, not aerosol and, you do not hear anything about it in the press because it is purely H2O (g) (water vapour) and is not harmful.