We are frequently asked what causes glass to fail (fog up). The short answer to that question is that the sealed glass unit becomes unsealed…
…allowing humid air to get inside, in-between the double-panes of glass, and then that humidity condensates to the glass when the temperature falls.
There also seems to be some sort of oxidizing of the aluminum-spacer bar when exposed to extended periods of moisture that maybe off-gases and etches the glass panes.