Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Humidity alone doesn't make it feel colder though, that's the point. People have this misconception that humid cold is colder because of humidity but it's false. Many times humid cold is accompanied by clouds, fog, windy, raw conditions, etc. It's THOSE factors making it feel colder, not humidity all by itself.
But fog occurs at high humidity levels so how is that causing it to feel colder, but not the humidity itself? How do you distinguish the two?
But fog occurs at high humidity levels so how is that causing it to feel colder, but not the humidity itself? How do you distinguish the two?
Fog doesn't always form with high humidity, and when it does it requires relative humidity to 100%. It's rather easy to distinguish between fog and not fog; look around you. I biked through fog one morning a few weeks ago; felt like natural air conditioning. Relative humidity was almost as high out of the fog (maybe 90% instead of 100%) but felt very different.
But fog occurs at high humidity levels so how is that causing it to feel colder, but not the humidity itself? How do you distinguish the two?
Fog makes it feel colder, but it's not the high humidity alone making it feel colder. It's more of a lack of sun. Fog would have the same effect as an overcast day. Plus, you can have a high humidity morning without fog.
But fog occurs at high humidity levels so how is that causing it to feel colder, but not the humidity itself? How do you distinguish the two?
When we get easterly winds from the continent, they have a tendency to be dry and cloudy. I remember a few days in February 2012 when it was overcast, cold and dry - temps of 1C and dew points below -10C. It felt very cold - very bitter. Definitely did not feel warmer than humid cold to me. Felt colder in fact - the coldest weather we get.
When we get easterly winds from the continent, they have a tendency to be dry and cloudy. I remember a few days in February 2012 when it was overcast, cold and dry - temps of 1C and dew points below -10C. It felt very cold - very bitter. Definitely did not feel warmer than humid cold to me.
You have dry, cold and cloudy weather in North America, usually after an arctic front pushes through but the clouds that were ahead of the front linger behind the front for a while. Of course, it clears off in a few hours though.
Fog doesn't always form with high humidity, and when it does it requires relative humidity to 100%. It's rather easy to distinguish between fog and not fog; look around you. I biked through fog one morning a few weeks ago; felt like natural air conditioning. Relative humidity was almost as high out of the fog (maybe 90% instead of 100%) but felt very different.
Yeah not always, but it usually does at or near 100% humidity. What do you mean by "fog" and "not fog"? Like when it's humid, but not foggy and instead say there's dew or frost?
Either way, it is still generally associated with higher humidity. I still don't see how can you definitively distinguish fog and humidity.
That also reminds me - in April this year we had one day when it was 12C but we had dew points of -11C at the same time. RH dropped to around 20%. We had a gusty wind at the same time, albeit with sunshine, and it still felt chilly. 12C with a 10C dew point would probably feel warmer.
Actually I just checked, and that day had a temperature of 12C with dew points down to -15C, so RH of around 13-14%.
Fog makes it feel colder, but it's not the high humidity alone making it feel colder. It's more of a lack of sun. Fog would have the same effect as an overcast day. Plus, you can have a high humidity morning without fog.
I understand that (the lack of sun and mornings without fog, heck most mornings are near 100% humidity), but when it is foggy, how do you distinguish the two (fog vs. humidity)?
I understand that (the lack of sun), but when it is foggy, how do you distinguish the two (fog vs. humidity)?
Fog is essentially a low-lying cloud, so the water droplets have much more of an effect on the apparent temperature, while high humidity alone is simply the temperature being really close to the dew point. The latter won't have an effect on apparent temperature at cold temperatures.
I'm tempted to say any condition that can be measured quantitatively (including humidity) has an effect on apparent temperature. We just don't know what that effect is.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
