(GIST OF SCIENCE REPORTER) Sensible Temperature

[November-2022]

Have you observed that it feels too hot in humid weather even after the temperature is not that much? There is a term called ‘sensible temperature’ – it is different for real temperature during humid weathers. It is the perceived temperature at a particular atmospheric condition. Humidity largely affects the sensible temperature. At different humidity levels, the sensible temperature is different for the same dry air temperature. At the same dry air temperature, it feels hotter at high humidity in air and less hot at lower humidity.
At high humid condition, it becomes hard for human body to regulate the temperature of the body through sweating as evaporation of the sweat becomes hard. In dry weather, evaporation of sweat from the skin keeps the body cold. Under high humidity conditions, it becomes hard for the sweat to get evaporated in the air and thus the human body has to release large amounts of sweat to maintain the body temperature, which often causes dehydration. Thus, the human body feels the temperature higher during humid seasons, even after the dry air temperature is not that much.