If there was ever such a thing as London Fog...

[Manok101]

We had it last night here in South Carolina. So foggy you couldn't see across the street. My question is, not being from London, or even England, my understanding is that the fog itself was created by all of the factories going in the industrial revolution, and that it doesn't happen much if at all anymore. Am I wrong in my understanding of the origin of the phrase?

[brianb]

my understanding is that the fog itself was created by all of the factories going in the industrial revolution, and that it doesn't happen much if at all anymore.

1. The thick fog was exacerbated by a high concentration of soot from inefficient cola burning in open hearths. It was yellow in colour & nicely described by the term "pea souper".

2. The development of urban heat islands have contributed at least as much as the Clean Air Act to the reduction in serious urban fogs in the UK. Dense fog still does occur, now mostly "clean" and in rural areas ... visibility below 10 yards is rare but still does occur.

3. I can remember groping my way home from school in a "pea souper" with visibility well below one yard - you couldn't see your hand if you held it out in front of you. Traffic was of course completely stopped. This was just north of Derby (English Midlands) in winter 1961.

[Dave S]

1. The thick fog was exacerbated by a high concentration of soot from inefficient cola burning in open hearths.

Yup. Back in thoses days it was always difficult to burn cola efficiently. Dave...

[Manok101]

I knew it had to do something with man made stuffs, just couldn't remember what. Thanks. MMM burning cola . I think he means Coal lol.

[adamsp123]

Wiki ... Pea soup fog - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[brianb]

I think he means Coal lol.

My bda

[acey]

Smoke + Fog = Smog

A Proper Pea-Souper – The Terrible London Smog of 1952

[keithatrochdale]

Quite right acey, it was called smog and was stopped by making London a smokeless zone.

It was so dense that you could easily loose your way and was quite spooky. As a child growing up in London I remember it well. The nearest experience I have to it was just before Christmas a number of years ago walking round Elvington Air Museum in thick fog and seeing buildings etc appear from the mist - very spooky, kept waiting to hear the sound of the bombers returning.

Elvington is well worth a visit, especially at this time of year if you have children, Santa Clause is flying in 18, 19, 22 and 23 December; click on the following link for more details.

Home of the Allied Air Forces Memorial

[glowjet]

We lived just a few miles from the Capital and near the River Thames, the worst one I remember you could not make out your hand in front of you, most sensible people had hankies over their mouths which became black after a short time, its no wonder so many elderly people died of lung infections during these fogs.

[brianb]

Did they have FIDO at Elvington? If not, in fog, the bombers would have been landing elsewhere ... there are numerous stories of returning crews being diverted to one of the very few airfields with FIDO and being informed "You are number 36 to land, circle at 18,000 feet" which might have been OK for those whose aircraft were able to climb that high and had a couple of hours fuel reserve in hand.

[dlp]

Going back to the OP, yes fog is very common in the UK in the winter, it's just thick mist really. Thankfully haven't seen a smog since I was in single digits!

[valleyman]

Coming from London I can remember as a kid the London Pea soupers. They were so dense you could not see your hand in front of your face. Buses would have to have a guy walking in front of them with a lantern to show the way to the driver. 1000,s would die from lung problems. As already stated Coal Burning was the main factor with just about every house burning coal on open fires. No central heating in those days. Now with modern heating it no longer happens. The pollution there now is from Car Exhust fumes.......Happy day

[Black Shuck]

As Brian says, the Clean Air Act in 1956 did a lot to remediate the air pollution in the UK (smog) and as other posts have stated, they are virtually non existent these days.

Over fifty years later, you can look a lot closer to home to still find "smog levels" of aerial pollution !

EPA aims to tighten Bush-era smog rules - U.S. news - Environment - msnbc.com

Bill£

[LukeSkywatcher]

In the words of Bill Bryson: "Fog is just a cloud that has lost the will to float".