What is latent heat?
Latent heat is the name of the energy that is either lost or obtained by a substance when it changes the condition, for example from gas to liquid. It is more measured as the amount of energy, joules than as a temperature.
Most substances may exist in three states: gas, liquid and solid, although there is another state of named plasma. The main difference between the substance in every state is how fast its molecules move. As a liquid, molecules move at speeds where they can join, break and then reopen. When they move slowly, they remain connected and form a solid. When they move fast, they remain broken and create gas.
For example, we usually consider water as liquid. However, it may also be solid (ice) or gas (steam). But as you can see when you cook water in the kettle or when the pond surface freezes, not all molecules in the state of changing the substance simultaneously.
When moleculasted changes, it has a different amount of energy. However, physical laws state that energy does notHe can only disappear. So when the molecule moves more slowly, excess energy is released into the surroundings as latent heat. When the molecule moves faster, it absorbed additional energy by taking latent heat from the surroundings.
You can feel the effects of latent heat on a hot day when sweat evaporates from the skin and feels colder. This is because the molecules of liquid that evaporate will need more energy when they become water vapor. This thermal energy is taken from your skin and reduces its temperature.
The effects of latent heat are also visible in the weather. When the water molecules in the air increase high enough, it becomes cooler and condenses a liquid that has less energy. The "replacement" energy becomes latent heat and makes the ambient air warmer. This leads to windows when the process occurs quickly, it can even cause a storm.
Latent heat also provides strength for hurricanesAnd cyclones that start through warm oceans, where there is a large supply of warm and humid air that can rise and then condense. The warmer the air, the more energy is the result of cooling and condensation, and therefore hurricanes are more likely and stronger in warmer periods.