Calling all southerners turned montanians!!! (Hamilton, Cut Bank: house, live in, yard)

[grace1231]

I was just wondering about this whole humidity issue, does 102 degrees really feel cooler with 12% humidity? 90 degrees with 70% humidity is miserable.

[jimj]

Yes, believe it or not it does. When we had the big storm the last week we were running 100 degrees at 99% humidity and we were reminded of Hotlanta and the sticky heat and were kind of miserable since we had no power for fans.
Drier air is not as "heavy" or full of water as humid air and sweat evaporates easier thereby cooling your body quicker.

[fbcobrn]

Originally Posted by grace1231

I was just wondering about this whole humidity issue, does 102 degrees really feel cooler with 12% humidity? 90 degrees with 70% humidity is miserable.

It seems like it to me. I was in Montana for the week of the 4th of July. I have never felt or seen it so hot (109 F.in Hamilton) in all my trips there. But......it didn't feel near as hot as 100+F. feels in the area south of Sacramento, Ca. in the Valley. We get weeks of triple digit heat for weeks on end, 115 in my backyard. can't breathe. Get in the car it's like 240' inside and A/C doesn't get it cool even by the time I get home. Don't even try to tough it out and save on the house A/C.....not if you want to sleep.

[Sunset_Va]

Last year while on a trip, I rode a bike around Flagstaff,AZ, the temperature was about 101, but the humidity was so low. I am not used to that being from Virginia where the temperature often matches the humidity.

I do know my mouth and throat were dry, had to keep drinking water.

Can see why now, high temps and low humidity will fool you, and cause death by dehydration.

[tigergal]

Originally Posted by grace1231

I was just wondering about this whole humidity issue, does 102 degrees really feel cooler with 12% humidity? 90 degrees with 70% humidity is miserable.

I don't live out there, but have been out there in the triple digits. I normally live in Memphis. The 102 degrees feels hotter on the skin, but it's not hard to breathe like it is with our high heat plus high humidity here.

[Reziac]

I've lived in Minnesota (routine peak 103F, 100% humidity) and the SoCal desert (routine peak 118F, 10% humidity or less) and there is absolutely no comparison. Low humidity makes high temps vastly more bearable. I will take 118 and dry over 100 and damp any day. Last weekend I was somewhere that was 90F and about 80%, and it was SO nice to come home to 100F and 10%.

As someone pointed out, you do need to watch your hydration in very dry conditions, but this is still much less of a problem than being unable to cool yourself at all when humidity prevents sweat from evaporating. People die of the heat in humid NYC. They *don't* die of the heat in the arid desert, even tho it's 20 degrees hotter. (Where in both cases, people are indoors but without cooling due to power outages.) And with low humidity, you can quite effectively cool yourself just by putting on a wet T-shirt, and that works very well no matter how hot it gets. With high humidity, all that does is make you even more soggy.

[snugglebump]

When I was in Minnesota visiting family a few summers ago, I about died from the high humidity and high heat. ACK! It felt so strange, with the soft mist in the air even at 2am in the morning, was sooooo gross! I'd pick Montanas hot, DRY heat anyday! Seattle isn't so bad when it gets hot, at night we cool off and I notice Montana at night, gets cold up by the Glacier Park areas (Browning,Cut Bank etc). Perfect weather! Don't think i'll be visiting Minnesota anytime soon LOL stuff that LOL! (still cant find the happy faces to put in here hmph)