I've recently been to Crete, Santorini and am currently on Ios. I've noticed that there is a hazy-ness when I look out on the sea: there's no definitive line where sky meets sea, they just blur together. I feel like I'm in the Truman Show or Stephen King's Dome.

The sky is so hazy that when the sun sets the last I see is the sun just disappearing into the haze instead of "dropping" below the horizon like I am used to seeing on Lake Superior.

Is this phenomenon due to a high amount water molecules (it's April) in the air, that are too think for the sun to penetrate through as it sets? Or is it something else?

  • $\begingroup$ I would guess sea salt aerosols. $\endgroup$ – Communisty Apr 18 '18 at 12:48

Basically, hazyness mostly comes down to particles in the atmosphere (aerosols). Could be water, could be soot and other exhaust from fires or combustion engines, could be simply dust. Sometimes differences in temperature obscure the horizon, too.

In your case my first guess is dust, most likely from northern Africa, which is blown north, out over the sea.

  • $\begingroup$ You mention particles and then water vapour, but water vapour is gaseous and transparent, not particles and not opaque. $\endgroup$ – gerrit Nov 2 '18 at 12:16
  • $\begingroup$ Still you can't see through clouds and fog can be rather impenetrable, also. And if you really want to break it down, at the core of each droplet there's a particle around with gaseous water condensed. $\endgroup$ – Erik Nov 2 '18 at 12:17
  • $\begingroup$ Clouds and fog consist of liquid or frozen water particles, not of water vapour. $\endgroup$ – gerrit Nov 2 '18 at 12:18

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