Micro-Season: “Thick Fog Blankets the Sky” (2023)

Aug 17 to Aug 22 is the micro-season “Thick Fog Blankets the Sky”.  This is the third micro-season of the season of First Autumn. All the micro-seasons within First Autumn are:

• Cold Wind Blows (Aug 07 –  Aug 11)
• The Evening Cicada Sings (Aug 12 – Aug 16)
• Thick Fog Blankets The Sky (Aug 17 – Aug 22)

These seasons were established in 1685 by Japanese astronomer Shibukawa Shunkai. While they are specific to Japan, you can use these seasons as a starting point for exploring the natural world.

To celebrate this season, we will learn about autumn fog and then read haiku by Issa, Basho, Buson, Reichhold, and Kerouac.

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Fog

Fog is often described as a cloud that stays close to the ground, and, like clouds, fog is made up of tiny suspended water droplets. However, unlike clouds, fog doesn’t move much.

The suspended water droplets that become fog form around tiny pieces of floating matter.  National Geographic explains this process by saying, “In order for fog to form, dust or some kind of air pollution needs to be in the air. Water vapor condenses around these microscopic solid particles.”⁽¹⁾

Fog can be either salt water or fresh water fog.  Fog that appears near bodies of salt water can go by many names including called sea fog, haar, or sea fret.⁽²⁾  In sea fog the water droplets condense around tiny particles of salt. 

If you are interested in learning more about fog, its formation, and how to classify fog, check out last year’s post where we took a deep dive into these topics.

Fog in Autumn

Fog is more likely to happen during autumn compared to other seasons due to the longer cool nights and continued warm days. The interaction between these warm and cool periods is ideal for fog formation.

To explain this further, when nighttime temperatures drop, the heat accumulated in the earth during the day begins to dissipate into the atmosphere. Then, as the temperature falls below the dew point, which is when water vapor condenses into water droplets, fog will form near the surface.

Radiation Fog and Autumn

Radiation fog, also known as ground or valley fog, is the most common type of fog in autumn. The chances of experiencing radiation fog increase after a rainy night because there is more moisture on the earth and in the air.  

It’s important to note winds over 15 mph may prevent the formation of radiation fog because the breeze can bring in drier air that will interrupt fog formation.

Seasonal Haiku

The World Kigo Database tells us the kiri is the term used for the fog of autumn and winter.  This is different from kasumi and oboro, which are the words used for the mist and haze experienced in spring. 

 In The Five Hundred Essential Japanese Season Words as selected by Kenkichi Yamamoto, fog is listed in the “Heavens” section of autumn words. In A Dictionary of Haiku, Jane Reichhold lists fog in the “Celestial” category of autumn words.  

Now with this in mind, let’s read some haiku!

Issa

the morning fog
tangled
in the willow
(translated by David G. Lanoue)

morning after morning
my tea tastes better...
falling fog
(translated by David G. Lanoue)

Buson

morning fog–
a painting of people passing
In a dream.
(translated by David Coomler)

In the morning fog 
a city of one thousand eaves — 
market noises
(translated by EP Allen)

Basho

clouds of fog
quickly doing their best to show
one hundred scenes 
(translated by Jane Reichhold)

Jane Reichhold

broken fence
river valley fog patches
the gaping holes

evening
in a secret cove
fog bound

Jack Kerouac

Leaves skittering on
   the tin roof
–August fog in Big Sur

Temple tree
   across the creek
–Fog blowing

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Haiku Invitation

This week’s haiku invitation is to write a haiku or senryu that references the arrival of autumn fog.

Share your haiku in the comments below, or post on your own page and link back to this post. I can’t wait to read what you write!  

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Thank You!

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Resources:

1. “Fog”; National Geographic Society
2. “Fog”; Wikipedia 
3. Mersereau, Dennis. “It’s not your imagination–here’s why fall is the foggiest season”. The Weather Network
4. “Fog Types”; National Weather Service PDF
5. “Fog, Mist, Haze, and More”; World Kigo Database

Issa’s haiku were retrieved from the World Kigo Database.  Basho’s haiku was retrieved from Matsuo Bashō’s haiku poems in romanized Japanese with English translations. Buson’s haiku was retrieved from Hokku: Writing Through the Seasons and Foxfire: The Selected Poems of Yosa Buson. Jane Reichhold’s haiku were retrieved from A Dictionary of Haiku.  Jack Kerouac’s haiku were retrieved from Book of Haikus.

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