what is the difference between fog and mist?

Answer 1

Fog :
a cloud in contact with the ground. Fog differs from other clouds only in that fog touches the surface of the Earth. The same cloud that is not fog on lower ground may be fog where it contacts higher ground such as hilltops or mountain ridges.


Mist :
is a phenomenon of small droplets suspended in air. It can occur as part of natural weather or volcanic activity, and is common in cold air above warmer water, in exhaled air in the cold, and in a steam room of a sauna. It can also be created artificially with aerosol canisters if the humidity conditions are right, and at waterfalls bottom.

a picture for mist :
http://www.reshmachitre.com/images/Niagara.jpg

a picture for fog :
http://lambcutlet.org/gallery/Day_16/The_Tian_Tan_Buddha_Statue_is_just_visible_through_the_thick_fog

Answer 2

The answer lies in their thickness – and how far we can see through them (ie: the visibility). If we can see less than 1 km through the cloud of water droplets, it is known as fog. If we can see between 1 and 2 km, we call it mist

Key fact: although mist and fog look like smoke, they are actually tiny drops of water floating in the air. In fact, they are clouds that have formed at ground level.

Mist and fog usually form at night when the air is too cold to hold all its moisture. Clear skies mean that the ground gets cold and it then cools the air close to it. This cool air causes condensation and water droplets form in the air. Fogs are thickest when the air can hold a lot of moisture.

Although mist is not as thick as fog, they are both formed in this same way. Mist, however, usually stays closer to the ground and you can see over the top of it. Mist is often seen on autumn mornings when nights get longer and cooler again. This is particularly true in valleys, because cold air sinks down and collects in the valley during the night.

Answer 3

A fog is a low lying cloud or heavy mist and is very wet as its particles are a little heavier than those of a mist which is like the particles produced by an atomiser.
A mist obscures the vision much less than a fog.
Both however, are phenomena brought about by weather patterns and the partial condensation and the pressure of water vapour in the air.
(A thick fog in the UK is called a 'Pea Souper' fog. Mist is when people say something like.."The mountains are obscurred by a light mist").

Answer 4

That is a excellent question.

There actually is very little difference. I find the visibility answers interesting since they are different from country to country. But looking at it from a purely meteorological viewpoint there is a difference.

Both are very, very small water droplets. However, fog (cloud in contact with the ground) is indeed nothing more than cloud droplets that are suspended in the air and DO NOT FALL!

Mist are droplets that are slightly larger than cloud droplets and can no longer be suspended in air because their weight becomes more air can suspend and very slowly falls. But, at a rate that is only a few feet per minute at most. So, mist is precipitation, fog is not.

You can have both fog and mist at the same time. This is due to the saturated air that makes up the fog (the air must be saturated with respect to water to create fog, that is the relative humidity is 100%) slowly continues to cool thus causing water vapor to condense to mantain hydrostatic balance (big term) and the water vapor slowly increases the size of the cloud droplet (as waper vapor condenses it would rather go directly to an already existing droplet rather than create a new one) and it slowly starts to fall.

Answer 5

For aviation purposes in India,fog is reported when the visibility is less than 1 Km and mist is reported when the visibility is more than 1 Km but less than 2 Kilometre.Otherwise both are same only.So,a dense mist is fog.

Answer 6

Fog is distinct from mist only in its density. Fog is defined as cloud which reduces visibility to less than 1 km, where as mist is that which reduces visibility to less than 2 km.

Answer 7

Fog is dry and Mist is damp.

Answer 8

mist an be any time of year and fog only in winter its cold and quite impenetrable

Answer 9

according to the joint air regulations

Mist (BR) - Very small water droplets in suspension which reduce the visibility to
between 1,000 and 4,999metres.
Fog (FG) - Very small water droplets in suspension which reduce the visibility to less
than 1,000metres.

Answer 10

One is spelled M I S T the other is spelled F O G.