Condensation Trail

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Condensation Trail

A visible trail of condensed water vapor or ice particles left behind an aircraft, an airfoil, etc. in motion through the air. Also called a contrail or vapor trail.
There are three kinds of condensation trails: the aerodynamic type, caused by reduced pressure of the air in certain areas as it flows past the aircraft; the convection type, caused by the rising of air warmed by an engine; and the engine-exhaust, or exhaust-moisture, type, formed by the ejection of water vapor from an engine into a cold atmosphere.

References

This article is based on NASA's Dictionary of Technical Terms for Aerospace Use