Wind factor

[MT_mulies]

So I know on a warm day with wind it can melt alot of ice. Is the opposite true? If it's cold with wind can in make alot of ice?

[Super-ice-bird]

I wouldn’t think so, because wind causes waves on open water that would just break up all the ice it was making and push it to shore. Although on already existing ice wind chill might help to strengthen it. But I’m no expert.

[slipperybob]

I wouldn't really say, that air movement melts ice, but it will evaporate the ice.  No idea how it will affect the making ice part.

[mboss13]

30+ gusts and 42 today. I just don't go the.

[buuddy]

So I know on a warm day with wind it can melt alot of ice. Is the opposite true? If it's cold with wind can in make alot of ice?

It's all about heat transfer. Heat can only move from hot to cold, so if the wind is warm it will transfer heat to the ice, and because the wind is continuous, over the course of a day a warm wind can melt a lot of ice.
On the other hand, if the wind is cold it will absorb heat from the ice but the transfer rate will not be the same as for that from a warm wind because the ice acts as an insulator shielding the water from the wind.

[ice dawg]

Ice melts at the top and forms from the bottom. I think wind has more to do with thawing ice than forming it.

[Gills-only]

Wind chill has no effect on ice making, a flag pole outside is 10* outside, and windchill 40 below, the flagpole is still gonna be 10* !!  Windchill only effects living things like us, dogs , cats, ect. Now wind with 45* temps will eat away snow and ice fast, however the flagpole will only be 45* still !!

[smokey66]

Wind chill has no effect on ice making, a flag pole outside is 10* outside, and windchill 40 below, the flagpole is still gonna be 10* !!  Windchill only effects living things like us, dogs , cats, ect.

Exactly!   and a thermometer cannot measure windchill. wind chill is only a calculation. So many people don't understand this.

[buuddy]

Wind chill has no effect on ice making, a flag pole outside is 10* outside, and windchill 40 below, the flagpole is still gonna be 10* !!  Windchill only effects living things like us, dogs , cats, ect. Now wind with 45* temps will eat away snow and ice fast, however the flagpole will only be 45* still !!

I have to respectfully disagree with your comment. Essentially what you are saying is true, but you are confusing and combining two different processes. It is true that the wind will not make anything colder than the ambient temperature. Remember heat can only transfer from hot to cold, so if the air and flagpole are at the same temperature no heat transfer can take place. But if the air temperature is different than that of the flagpole, the heat will move from hot to cold and if there is any wind, that transfer rate will increase because the flagpole will be in contact with a lot more air than if there was no wind. So the wind can't make anything get colder (or warmer) than the air temperature but it will make it get colder (or warmer) at a faster rate.
Now about how windchill affects people and warm blooded animals. When our skin is exposed to air there is a certain amount of evaporation from our skin, so the air will absorb heat from our body as well as any moisture that is evaporated by our skin. The latent heat of evaporation is 540 calories per gram which is much greater than what the heat transfer would be if there was no evaporation, so wind will make us become very cold very fast.

[HWeber]

"windchill" will effect anything that has a difference in temperature. To say it has zero effect on ice making is silly but at the same time the effect is limited because the ice insulates the water below the ice

[perch chacer]

In my opinion, ice is made from the under surface unless there is slush on top to freeze.  Without the slush, and the wind is blowing there is no surface moisture (water) on the ice to freeze.  Cold temperature makes ice from the under surface.  Wind chill doesn't change the actual temp, it just changes what the temp feels like.

[missoulafish]

Ambient temp of 40* with a wind of 60 mph will feel like 25* but ice will NEVER  be formed ...

[HWeber]

Ambient temp of 40* with a wind of 60 mph will feel like 25* but ice will NEVER  be formed ...

I agree my point was that below freezing in theory wind should help ice growth. Enough to be noticeable? Probably not

[Gills-only]

Ambient temp of 40* with a wind of 60 mph will feel like 25* but ice will NEVER  be formed ...

.         Exactly !!

[buuddy]

Ambient temp of 40* with a wind of 60 mph will feel like 25* but ice will NEVER  be formed ...

I'll give this one more try.
HEAT CAN ONLY TRAVEL FROM HOT TO COLD. If the ambient temperature is 40 degrees, no amount of wind can make any ice because it isn't cold enough to make ice. When ice forms there has to be a heat transfer from the water to the air. This heat loss is by conduction and convection. The greater the temperature difference between the water and the air, the faster ice will form. Without any wind, the water conducts heat into the air making the air warmer, this reduces the temperature difference between the two until convection air currents move this heated air away, exposing the water to more colder air again. With a wind, the warmed air is being removed at a faster rate so the water is constating being exposed to colder air and this will promote faster ice growth.

[missoulafish]

With a wind, the warmed air is being removed at a faster rate so the water is constating being exposed to colder air and this will promote faster ice growth.

If the ambient air temp is less than or equal to 32*...

[buuddy]

If the ambient air temp is less than or equal to 32*...

Yes, this is true, the air temperature has to be below freezing in order for the water to conduct away the heat that is needed to form ice.

[Wilkin]

Buuddy is correct, wind speed is a factor in ice making as is sun angle,frost or snow cover and a few other things.
 


Lake Ice - Ice growth
lakeice.squarespace.co m/ice-growth

[slipperybob]

In the spring or fall, when I go fishing with air temp in the 34 to 36 degrees.  Now why is it that I get ice frosting up on my rod tip while casting and reeling?

No frost on ground, no ice crystals on water...

[missoulafish]

The water is 32* or less...

[buuddy]

In the spring or fall, when I go fishing with air temp in the 34 to 36 degrees.  Now why is it that I get ice frosting up on my rod tip while casting and reeling?

No frost on ground, no ice crystals on water...

This is another point altogether, What you are seeing here is latent heat of evaporation that I touched on in my previous post. In order for water to evaporate it needs to acquire 540 calories for each gram of water that evaporates. It does this by grabbing heat from whatever it can. So you end up with some of the water on your guides evaporating while some of it freezes.
This is the only time where windchill can actually make something colder than the air temperature because of evaporation.
And this is why when you take a soaker while ice fishing that you really need to get into dry clothes, the wet clothes will see a lot of evaporation and it will make you very cold.