Quotation from: General Science

Written by: Bertha M. Clark


The daily evaporation of moisture into the atmosphere keeps the
atmosphere more or less full of water vapor; but the atmosphere can
hold only a definite amount of vapor at a given temperature, and as
soon as it contains the maximum amount for that temperature, further
evaporation ceases. If clothes are hung out on a damp, murky day they
do not dry, because the air contains all the moisture it can hold, and
the moisture in the clothes has no chance to evaporate. When the air
contains all the moisture it can hold, it is said to be saturated, and
if a slight fall in temperature occurs when the air is saturated,
condensation immediately begins in the form of rain, snow, or fog. If,
however, the air is not saturated, a fall in temperature may occur
without producing precipitation. The temperature at which air is
saturated and condensation begins is called the _dew point_.

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