Jump to content
Snow?
Local
Radar
Cold?
IGNORED

Humidex - Why is it not used in forecasts?


Recommended Posts

Posted
  • Location: Edmonton Alberta(via Chelmsford, Exeter & Calgary)
  • Weather Preferences: Sunshine and 15-25c
  • Location: Edmonton Alberta(via Chelmsford, Exeter & Calgary)

when It comes to summer time I used to find the humidex or heat index invaluable in my day to day life when I lived in North America..so I wondered why it is not used widely here?..we use windchill esp in winter for how cold it actually feels but not the humidex for how warm it actually feels..so any reason why not?

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Humidex

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Posted
  • Location: Exile from Argyll
  • Location: Exile from Argyll

Meteociel have humidex charts - here's the one for Friday afternoon.

 

Posted Image

 

They also do windchill in winter.

 

I should also add that they have the humidex under current obs section.

 

http://www.meteociel.fr/observations-meteo/humidex.php

Edited by Gael_Force
  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Posted
  • Location: The North Kent countryside
  • Weather Preferences: Hot summers, snowy winters and thunderstorms!
  • Location: The North Kent countryside

Isn't that the same thing as 'feels like' temperature? If so, I see it all the time on forecasts.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Posted
  • Location: N.Bedfordshire, E.Northamptonshire
  • Weather Preferences: Cool not cold, warm not hot. No strong Wind.
  • Location: N.Bedfordshire, E.Northamptonshire

Isn't that the same thing as 'feels like' temperature? If so, I see it all the time on forecasts.

Have to repeat this comment also.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Posted
  • Location: Edmonton Alberta(via Chelmsford, Exeter & Calgary)
  • Weather Preferences: Sunshine and 15-25c
  • Location: Edmonton Alberta(via Chelmsford, Exeter & Calgary)

Have to repeat this comment also.

I have never seen it in a forecast over here eg tomorrow will be 28c but will feel like 35c

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Posted
  • Location: Dorset
  • Weather Preferences: warehamwx.co.uk
  • Location: Dorset

I have never seen it in a forecast over here eg tomorrow will be 28c but will feel like 35c

Yeah, it's 'feels like temperature' here. The MO use it on there website for my local area.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Posted
  • Location: The North Kent countryside
  • Weather Preferences: Hot summers, snowy winters and thunderstorms!
  • Location: The North Kent countryside

Most of the big sites do.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Posted
  • Location: West Sussex
  • Weather Preferences: Outdoors
  • Location: West Sussex

Yep, we use a 'feels like' temperature on all the forecast pages.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Posted
  • Location: N.Bedfordshire, E.Northamptonshire
  • Weather Preferences: Cool not cold, warm not hot. No strong Wind.
  • Location: N.Bedfordshire, E.Northamptonshire

I have never seen it in a forecast over here eg tomorrow will be 28c but will feel like 35c

http://www.netweather.tv/index.cgi?action=10day;sess=

 

ten day forecast here does that :)

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Posted
  • Location: Edmonton Alberta(via Chelmsford, Exeter & Calgary)
  • Weather Preferences: Sunshine and 15-25c
  • Location: Edmonton Alberta(via Chelmsford, Exeter & Calgary)

im talking about main stream tv forecasts

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Posted
  • Location: Cheddington, Buckinghamshire
  • Weather Preferences: Winter: Cold & Snowy, Summer: Just not hot
  • Location: Cheddington, Buckinghamshire

im talking about main stream tv forecasts

 

 

I found that US forecasts are much more technical. The BBC and others have dumbed it down so much I reckon they don't think the public can cope with a "feels like" temperature.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have never seen it in a forecast over here eg tomorrow will be 28c but will feel like 35c

 

One aspect is that the Met Office use heat index rather than humidex for their 'feels like' temperature, which under UK conditions will rarely give a perceived temperature higher than actual.

 

The feels like temperature apparently uses wind chill for low temperatures, heat index for high, and a combination of the two inbetween as described on their blog here - http://metofficenews.wordpress.com/2012/02/15/what-is-feels-like-temperature/

 

A number of other indices have been derived to supposedly describe perceived temperature more accurately such as the Universal Thermal Climate Index (UTCI) which factors in temperature, humidity, wind chill, solar radiant energy, clothing and metabolic rate to work at both high or low temperatures, warning of heat stress or frostbite for example.

 

But with regards to high temperatures and humidity, the wet bulb temperature is the temperature the skin feels with evaporation of perspiration and it lies between the temperature and dewpoint - adding these together gives a rough estimate as to the feel of the airmass.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Posted
  • Location: Dorset
  • Weather Preferences: warehamwx.co.uk
  • Location: Dorset

What I will say is though, I completely disregard the MO feels like temps, because they are so wrong. My own Davis station calculates this fairly accurately, the MO feels like temps is 3°C below the actual air temp, which is impossible with the humidity today.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

What I will say is though, I completely disregard the MO feels like temps, because they are so wrong. My own Davis station calculates this fairly accurately, the MO feels like temps is 3°C below the actual air temp, which is impossible with the humidity today.

 

Well as pointed out they use heat index which needs relatively high dew points or temperature to give feels like values higher than ambient - for example Bournemouth near to you is reporting 20°C temperature and 15°C dewpoint which gives a heat index of 20°C, and they may possibly be including a wind chill factor.

Humidex gives a value of 24°C.

Edited by Interitus
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...