Hey Ray! Dew Points Are Better Than Humidity For Determining Comfort

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- It may be controversial to say in these parts, but it is ridiculous to use relative humidity as an indicator of comfort.

While many people are familiar with relative humidity, it is just that; relative. It tells you how close the atmosphere is to saturation.

You can have 100% humidity when it is 50 degrees.

You will still be comfortable, even though the atmosphere can't hold onto any more moisture. This is when fog forms.

Another example: if the temperature is 85 and the dew point is 70, that gives you a relative humidity of 61%.

That 61% may not sound bad, but it is super humid!

You can tell with a dew point that high, even though the relative humidity is lower than the first example.

Dew points are a superior way to determine how comfortable it will be, humidity-wise.

Dew points are the temperature at below which water droplets begin to condense and dew can form.

The higher the dew point, the more moisture there is in the air. That moisture is what determines how comfortable you are.

Whenever your dew points are in the 40's and 50's, it is comfortable, humidity-wise.

When your dew points touch the low 60's, you start to feel the heavy air a little bit.

When dew points touch the mid to upper 60's, it starts feeling muggy.

When your dew points are in the 70's, it feels like a tropical rain forest.

All these numbers stand alone and are not relative to anything else, so If you learn these numbers, you will have a far better system to determine comfort.

It may not be the "old way" you're used to, but it is better.

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