Wind chill, simply put, is the "feels like" temperature. Wind chill is what the air feels like to your skin when the air temperature and wind is factored together. This is often a confusing aspect of the weather forecast for many people, it seems...I've had a lot of questions about this.
So, this seems to be an appropriate place and time to talk about it! This weekend will have a "wind chill factor", if you will. The wind will be breezy from time to time, and add an extra "chill" to your skin if it's exposed to the outside air.
So how do you figure out the wind chill temperature? There is a really simple way! Take a peek at the image to the left. This is a wind chill chart created by NOAA and the National Weather Service. It's a cross sectional chart that allows you to calculate what the chill will be, as long as you know the temperature and the wind.
For instance, this weekend, if the air temp is around 35, and the wind is around 10 mph, the wind chill ( or "feels like" temp) will be near 27 degrees. So it actually feels colder than the actual air temperature.
What's the science behind all of this? Evaporation! Think about this... if your hand is wet and you blow on it, your skin feels colder, right? It's because that moisture is evaporating off of your skin and transferring heat away from your body to the surrounding air. As a result, you have less heat, and feel colder. This is how wind chill works!
How to avoid wind chill? Simply cover all of your skin under cold, windy circumstances and keep your skin blocked from the wind. Wearing windproof clothing can help block the wind, or several layers will keep wind from penetrating your clothing to the skin.
Stay warm this weekend!
