Chill factor."Supercool su·per·cool v. su·per·cooled, su·per·cool·ing, su·per·cools v.tr. To cool (a liquid) below a transition temperature without the transition occurring, especially to cool below the freezing point without , and Strange" (SN: 1/26/08, p. 58) keeps the reader on track with accurate, entertaining metaphors. It ends with a riveting observation from the White Mountains White Mountains, part of the Appalachian system, N N.H. and SW Maine, rising to 6,288 ft (1,917 m) at Mt. Washington in the Presidential Range and to 5,249 ft (1,600 m) at Mt. Lafayette in the Franconia Mountains. Crawford Notch separates these two main groups. of New Hampshire New Hampshire, one of the New England states of the NE United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts (S), Vermont, with the Connecticut R. forming the boundary (W), the Canadian province of Quebec (NW), and Maine and a short strip of the Atlantic Ocean (E). : The tree line occurs where windchill temperatures reach 220 kelvins, the temperature at which supercooled water "undergoes a phase transition." Windchill temperatures are not physical temperatures--neither the trees nor the air is at a temperature of 220 kelvins. Windchill temperatures answer the question, "At what lower temperatures would air have to be to achieve the same rates of cooling observed at the actual, higher temperatures in the absence of winds?" GENE BARTH Gene Barth was an American football official in the National Football League (NFL). He is most notable for being the referee in Super Bowl XVIII, played January 22, 1984. Personal In addition to officiating in the NFL, Barth was the president of an oil company. , CHICAGO, ILL. Windchill does not equate to actual temperature, so the phrasing in the story was misleading. However, high winds also play a role in limiting tree growth. On Mount Washington Mount Washington is the name of several mountains in North America:
Your article "Supercool, and Strange" reminded me of the excitement about "polywater" in the late 1960s. Just as in the new report, polywater was produced by studying water confined in capillary tubes. Could we be seeing the same phenomenon all over again? DIETRICH MARCUSE, LAKEWOOD, N.J. |
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