🔍 Key Concepts

• Dew point: the temperature to which air must be cooled for water vapor to condense • Role of condensation nuclei (tiny particles) in forming droplets • How cloud cover vs. clear skies and wind speed affect nighttime cooling of surfaces

💭 Think About

• Think about what must happen to the air and the surface temperature so that water vapor changes into liquid on that surface. • Which conditions help a surface cool down quickly at night, and which conditions prevent it from cooling enough? • For each choice, ask: does this condition promote cooling below the dew point, or does it keep the surface too warm/too mixed for dew to form?

✅ Before You Answer

• Identify which options truly promote radiational cooling of the surface at night. • Decide whether wind should be light, calm, or strong for dew to form efficiently on a surface. • Check if the surface should be cooler than or warmer than the dew point for condensation (dew) to actually appear.