Why does the amount of humidity in the air affect comfort moreso than the temperature?
In: 43
When it’s hot, Humans sweat. The sweat transfers heat from inside the body, to the outside of said body, and that heat is then transferred to the air when the sweat evaporates. The water component of sweat can also be cooled by say, a breeze. The cool sweat can then absorb more heat from the upper layers of your skin, free of charge.
So heat is removed from you internally, by way of sweat. And then the wind cools the sweat making your outer layers of skin colder, thus making room for more heat to move into your outer layers of skin. It’s a 2 for one deal.
This is what happens in a “Dry Heat”.
But in a humid climate, that sweat doesn’t evaporate. And in all probability, doesn’t get cooler. So you’re in a situation where you’re covered in sweat that won’t go away, and the sweat itself may even absorb the warmness of the air around it, making the sweat warmer than it was when it left your body. So now, you feel gross, covered in warm sweat that does nothing but keep the warmth in and around you. This bodily function has failed you and left you much worse off.
Latest Answers