# ice

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice/23637>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [June 26, 2000, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice/23637 "2000-06-26T23:18:10Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![mango](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ed655f/32.png) [@mango](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mango)\
**Post date:** [June 26, 2000, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice/23637/1 "2000-06-26T23:18:10Z")

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Dry ice. How can water be dry?  
WHy is there steam coming off of it? thanks.

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**Author:** ![Padeye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@Padeye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Padeye)\
**Post date:** [June 26, 2000, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice/23637/2 "2000-06-26T23:23:31Z")

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“Dry ice” is not water but frozen carbon dioxide. It doesn’t stay in liquid form at atmophere pressure so it turns almost directly into vapor.

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**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\
**Post date:** [June 26, 2000, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice/23637/3 "2000-06-26T23:24:41Z")

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> [@](#):
>
> \*\*  
> “Dry ice” is not water but frozen carbon dioxide. It doesn’t stay in liquid form at atmophere pressure so it turns almost directly into vapor.  
> \*\*

A process known as sublimation.

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**Author:** ![winky99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/71c47a/32.png) [@winky99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/winky99)\
**Post date:** [June 26, 2000, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice/23637/4 "2000-06-26T23:26:05Z")

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Its not water. Dry ice is frozen CO[sub]2[/sub]. The temperature is about -100 degrees F.

Check out this [link](http://www.howstuffworks.com/question264.htm).

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**Author:** ![Padeye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@Padeye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Padeye)\
**Post date:** [June 26, 2000, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ice/23637/5 "2000-06-26T23:29:41Z")

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> [@](#):
>
> \*\*  
> … into vapor.  
> \*\*

Whoops, make that “into gas.” _Not_ the same thing as vapor.