In materials science, quenching is the rapid cooling of a workpiece in water, oil or air to obtain certain material properties. A type of heat treating, quenching prevents undesired low-temperature processes, such as phase transformations, from occurring. It does this by reducing the window of time during which these undesired reactions are both thermodynamically favorable, and kinetically accessible; for instance, quenching can reduce the crystal grain size of both metallic and plastic material
The length of the day in Walla Walla varies significantly over the course of the year. In 2017, the shortest day is December 21, with 8 hours, 38 minutes of daylight; the longest day is June 21, with 15 hours, 46 minutes of daylight.
The clearer part of the year in Walla Walla begins around June 11 and lasts for 119 days, ending around October 8. On July 29, the clearest day of the year, the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 82% of the time, and overcast or mostly cloudy 18% of the time.