14 DAY TRIAL // Except for those who live in a tropical paradise far, far away from even the slightest chills, everybody knows that, when temperatures drop, we get to see our own breath leaving our body. In fact, it kind of looks like we're coughing out clouds.
The video below explains how and why this happens. Contrary to what some might assume, no, we are not dealing with magic. Just good old science. In a nutshell, the same phenomenon that creates fog explains why we can see our breath in winter.
The first thing to keep in mind is that, when temperatures drop, so does the level of moisture in the air around us. Our lungs, on the other hand, forever hold plenty of moisture, part of which leaves the body whenever we breathe.
Once out of our mouth and exposed to the dry, cold winter air, all this moisture that our lungs let out condenses and forms those teeny tiny clouds we see swirling all around our head. The more moisture is released, the bigger these clouds are.
Scientists say that, in order to condense, this moisture needs so-called condensation nuclei, which are basically freakishly small particles in our breath. Dust, soot, cell particles and even bits and pieces of DNA can act as condensation nuclei.
