Wednesday, 13 April 2016

thermodynamics - Why does the windshield of my car freeze even if the outside temperature is above freezing?



Under what conditions does the windshield of a car freeze even if the outside temperature is above freezing?


It is not clear whether this is related to the question why bridges freeze with non-freezing outside temperatures (see related topic), as I did not see an explanation in terms of radiation there. It indeed seems that electromagnetic radiation is the culprit for windshields, which would predict that this phenomenon can only occur with an open sky. Does anybody know whether this is true?


And why does ice only form on top of the windshield and not on the metal surface of the car? Is this because heat is conducted much faster on the metal surface?




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