Which process describes droplets recombining to form larger droplets?

Which process describes droplets recombining to form larger droplets?

• A. Dissolution
• B. Coalescence
• C. Condensation
• D. Evaporation

Answer: (B)

Coalescence is the process where droplets collide and fuse to form a larger droplet. In clouds, tiny droplets frequently run into one another due to turbulence and air motions; when they meet, surface tension pulls them together and they merge, creating bigger drops. This growth by merging is what leads to raindrops forming from many small cloud droplets. Other terms describe droplets changing size without merging: condensation adds droplets from water vapor onto nuclei, evaporation reduces droplet size by turning liquid into vapor, and dissolution involves solutes dissolving in a solvent rather than droplets merging.

Coalescence is the process where droplets collide and fuse to form a larger droplet. In clouds, tiny droplets frequently run into one another due to turbulence and air motions; when they meet, surface tension pulls them together and they merge, creating bigger drops. This growth by merging is what leads to raindrops forming from many small cloud droplets. Other terms describe droplets changing size without merging: condensation adds droplets from water vapor onto nuclei, evaporation reduces droplet size by turning liquid into vapor, and dissolution involves solutes dissolving in a solvent rather than droplets merging.