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I've never gotten that either, I think people associate humid cold with clouds or wind. It's the lack of sun and breeze that feels colder, not the RH. Under the same cloud cover and wind speeds, dry cold would feel colder.
I work sometimes with someone who is from Nova Scotia and they talk about how cold it is here compared to the "dry" climate where they're from -they actually say that winter feels colder here(crazy stuff).
When I point out that their april is colder, has more rain and is less sunny than our winter, and therefore april in Nova Scotia should feel colder than the winter there, they say it's different and not comparable -never going to win that one.
I've heard the same nonsense from a Russian and even from people from such well known dry climates as the UK and Netherlands.
When this topic comes up I think about the easterly spell we had in February 2012 - when we had highs of 1C with dew points below -10C, with overcast skies, a breeze and no precipitation. It felt very cold indeed.
When this topic comes up I think about the easterly spell we had in February 2012 - when we had highs of 1C with dew points below -10C, with overcast skies, a breeze and no precipitation. It felt very cold indeed.
I think people who say that haven't experienced dry, cloudy cold before.
People will post endless about dry cold feeling cold, even when there is absolutely no scientific reason why this would be the case. And don't give me the "evaporative cooling is more efficient at cold temps" nonsense. There would be no reason for your body to sweat in cold temps, so that doesn't apply here.
People will post endless about dry cold feeling cold, even when there is absolutely no scientific reason why this would be the case. And don't give me the "evaporative cooling is more efficient at cold temps" nonsense. There would be no reason for your body to sweat in cold temps, so that doesn't apply here.
Depends what one is doing. I've been working in temperatures well below freezing, and worked up a sweat.
Water droplets will freeze quicker the lower the relative humidity is, at temperatures close to freezing. 5% RH will see droplets freeze up to 5C, while 100% RH will need about -2C to freeze.
You can sweat in cold temperatures if you do enough exercise or physical activity. When I say cold, I mean temps of 20 F or 30 F, not -30 F or -40 F.
Thermal conductivity rules don't change simply because it's cold or hot, it'll be the same. There's absolutely no argument that backs up humid cold being colder. Every argument about humid cold being colder involves the person talking clouds, fog, or wind. None of those have anything to do with the humidity itself besides fog. People mistake those factors making it feel colder with humidity itself, which is simply untrue.
People have a knee-jerk reaction with "dry cold= sunny" and "humid cold = clouds and wind". Which is not always true.
I'm curious why I feel such a big difference between the coast and the prairies at similar temperatures (just above or below freezing).
When the temperature goes around freezing in Vancouver the air feels very thick and imposing, my breath comes out in giant clouds of steam, and I start shivering uncontrollably very quickly. Doesn't matter if I'm wearing a good pair of gloves or whatever, my whole body just gets uncomfortably cold very quickly.
On the other hand, at the same temperature the air in Saskatoon feels thin and light, I can barely see my breath, and I don't start shivering until it's a fair bit colder. I only get uncomfortable if it's fairly windy and I leave too much skin exposed to the wind, otherwise it feels far more pleasant than that same temperature in Vancouver. This is true down to about -5 or -10 Celsius.
I've travelled between Vancouver and Saskatoon many times during chilly weather over the last 8 years, and this has been pretty consistent - and I've accounted for weather conditions, clothing, etc. Temperatures that are just above or just below freezing simply feel more pleasant to me on the prairies than on the coast.
If this isn't related to moisture in the air, what would be causing it? Could it have to do with altitude? Vancouver is at sea level while Saskatoon is just under 500 meters. Obviously the air gets thinner as we go higher, so perhaps that feeling of thickness in Vancouver / thinness in Saskatoon is related to that?
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