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What Is Super Fog?
January 9, 2024 at 03:53 PM EST
By WeatherBug Meteorologist, Mark Ellinwood
A combination of low-visibility hazards can lead to dangerous outcomes.
Fog is relatively common, more so for some parts of the world than others. While on its own, it can create treacherous driving conditions with barely enough visibility to see the vehicle in front of you, super fog can be even worse.
Super fog is created when smoke combines with moisture released by damp, smoldering organic material. Smoke from the burning of brush, leaves, and trees in an area with relatively cool and saturated air at the surface (which is sometimes already in the form of fog) creates the very dense air that can lower visibility to almost zero at times.
Dense firework smoke in an area where fog forms could also be called a form of super fog due to the further reduction in visibility.
The obvious hazard to super fog is when it makes it impossible to see any vehicles in front of you while driving. In super fog, there is virtually zero time to react to any changing traffic conditions, so when super fog occurs it can cause large pileups.
Image: The aftermath of a multi-vehicle pileup on I-55 in Manchac, La. caused by super fog, Monday, Oct. 23, 2023. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Fog is relatively common, more so for some parts of the world than others. While on its own, it can create treacherous driving conditions with barely enough visibility to see the vehicle in front of you, super fog can be even worse.
Super fog is created when smoke combines with moisture released by damp, smoldering organic material. Smoke from the burning of brush, leaves, and trees in an area with relatively cool and saturated air at the surface (which is sometimes already in the form of fog) creates the very dense air that can lower visibility to almost zero at times.
Dense firework smoke in an area where fog forms could also be called a form of super fog due to the further reduction in visibility.
The obvious hazard to super fog is when it makes it impossible to see any vehicles in front of you while driving. In super fog, there is virtually zero time to react to any changing traffic conditions, so when super fog occurs it can cause large pileups.
Image: The aftermath of a multi-vehicle pileup on I-55 in Manchac, La. caused by super fog, Monday, Oct. 23, 2023. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)