Tips on acclimating to the winters (Chicago: estimate, suburbs, average)

[jdiddy]

Originally Posted by Drover

X degrees feels different when less UV rays are being filtered out by the atmosphere, which is what happens the closer you get to the equator.

Oh, maybe i'm wrong then. But I always thought the differences in how temp feels were due to wind/humidity. But a sunny, calm 59 day here feels different than a sunny, calm 59 here further south?

[Drover]

I suppose in the grand scheme of things, 59 degrees in Flagstaff versus 59 degrees in Saskatchewan isn't going to determine whether you're comfortable in a T-shirt versus a jacket... but the intensity of the sun feels different at different latitudes. You can spend all summer in Chicago at the swimming pool working up a nice bronze tan.... and then go down and spend a day in the sun in Florida and get sunburned all over again.

[Steve-o]

Originally Posted by Drover

I suppose in the grand scheme of things, 59 degrees in Flagstaff versus 59 degrees in Saskatchewan isn't going to determine whether you're comfortable in a T-shirt versus a jacket... but the intensity of the sun feels different at different latitudes. You can spend all summer in Chicago at the swimming pool working up a nice bronze tan.... and then go down and spend a day in the sun in Florida and get sunburned all over again.

Well said.

The intensity of the sun down south/sw/west/etc is much higher than it is here. I burn down there in 2 hours, up here it takes 10-12 hours, sometimes longer. The sun sucks down there, its too intense in summer. Winter is nice, because you can actually feel it, unlike here.

[rgb123]

I dunno guys....this is out of control! Remember...but its a dry heat!!!! yes I burn worse in those places, but the dryness seems to really make things cooler

except maybe when its perhaps....59 - 30 degrees....then the dampness makes you cold.

????? I'll volunteer to travel to different climate zones and check on this!

[jdiddy]

Originally Posted by Steve-o

Well said.

The intensity of the sun down south/sw/west/etc is much higher than it is here. I burn down there in 2 hours, up here it takes 10-12 hours, sometimes longer. The sun sucks down there, its too intense in summer. Winter is nice, because you can actually feel it, unlike here.

Yes this is all true - but I don't think that affects how temperature feels. For instance, just so I can brag about my travels some more, I was recently in Brazil, and yes, the sun was definately stronger. But it still felt like 85 when it was 85. It didn't feel any warmer just because I needed to wear SPF 50 to protect my gringo skin.

[deegers]

Alright, weather monitors, isn't Chicago's climates getting warmer anyways due to global changes? I recal the last couple of winters (not including the current one) being colder less amount of time. MIlder if you will. Can anyone recall this?

[Steve-o]

Originally Posted by jdiddy

Yes this is all true - but I don't think that affects how temperature feels. For instance, just so I can brag about my travels some more, I was recently in Brazil, and yes, the sun was definately stronger. But it still felt like 85 when it was 85. It didn't feel any warmer just because I needed to wear SPF 50 to protect my gringo skin.

Youll feel that sun and its intensity much more in the desert regions for some reason I cant explain. For example, when in Florida, I burn ultra fast too, but the sun doesnt feel nearly as warm as it does in Phoenix. I might sound silly to some, but trust me, the southwestern sun is brutally intense, and 60 degrees there feels warmer to me than 60 degrees here, only because the sun feels 5 times warmer. Picture this. Ever drive on a sunny winter day, with the sun beating down on you through the window in the car? Ever gotten hot enough to want to take your coat off? Thats what it feels like to me when Im in NM or AZ, but when Im outside. Itll be a bit crisp, but the sun feels like its being magnified, making it more comfortable, even though the temp is the same as in Chicago. Make sense? hahaha I cant think of any other way to describe it. Oh, or think about those people skiing in AZ in short sleeve shirts, thats how warm the sun feels, even though its not really that warm out.

[Steve-o]

Originally Posted by deegers

Alright, weather monitors, isn't Chicago's climates getting warmer anyways due to global changes? I recal the last couple of winters (not including the current one) being colder less amount of time. MIlder if you will. Can anyone recall this?

Id say its been generally a bit more mild, but not this year so far! We've had below average temps and above average snowfall. Earlier this week felt like a deep freeze in January. Low temps in some areas were in the negative range, with windchills 10 or more below zero. It was insane and far too early for this crap. Tom SKilling said it was the coldest we've been (this time of year) in almost 40 years.

[rgb123]

actuallly its true..if you look at 30 year averages compared to say 10 year averages it has been milder,so someone my age, 30, would definitley notice a difference in the last 10 years, and its not just my memory of trudging through snow to get to school!
I dont know though, that its really that noticable, or if that holds up in 50 years or 100 years, here (I think warming is observed more at the poles...and its only a degree or two). We sure have had some cold snaps in the last few years anyway though!

I just happened to note this the last time we were arguing about weather.....records that go back farther indicicate how really cold it does get here, better than the last ten years!

[jdiddy]

Originally Posted by Steve-o

Youll feel that sun and its intensity much more in the desert regions for some reason I cant explain. For example, when in Florida, I burn ultra fast too, but the sun doesnt feel nearly as warm as it does in Phoenix. I might sound silly to some, but trust me, the southwestern sun is brutally intense, and 60 degrees there feels warmer to me than 60 degrees here, only because the sun feels 5 times warmer. Picture this. Ever drive on a sunny winter day, with the sun beating down on you through the window in the car? Ever gotten hot enough to want to take your coat off? Thats what it feels like to me when Im in NM or AZ, but when Im outside. Itll be a bit crisp, but the sun feels like its being magnified, making it more comfortable, even though the temp is the same as in Chicago. Make sense? hahaha I cant think of any other way to describe it. Oh, or think about those people skiing in AZ in short sleeve shirts, thats how warm the sun feels, even though its not really that warm out.

Yes, I see what you're saying, and it works for me.