Weather is relative –very relative
Last night’s low was 48 F at the Accomack County airport. That’s notable since just a week ago, the low’s were close to 60 F. A quick look through the almanac records show that we have not see a temp in the 40’s since April 24th.
The more important characteristic to Eastern Shore weather is humidity. Throughout the summer, average daily humidity starts at 100% before dawn and stays there until about 9am or 10am. It then slowly drops to something between 55% on a good day to 75% on a more typical day. By sunset, the humidity is well on its way to 100% again.
Contrast the Eastern Shore The North East or the Desert West. There are lots of obvious difference. So, why do people live in places where the humidity is 100% or where the temperature regularly is over 100 F ? I lived in Singapore for a time and everyone I talked to who didn’t live there, always asked, “how can you stand it ? – it’s hot and humid all the time.” I remember it took me about three weeks before I didn’t notice the weather and was very comfortable dressing in long pants as a regular measure. I could go for walks out of doors and not look like I walked through a rain shower.
It’s all relative.
Would I prefer to live in Hawaii ? Well, it turns out, the weather on the Eastern Shore is very close to Hawaii but if you asked people who had never been to either, they’d likely guess differently.
If you could build a biosphere, what weather would you create ?
If one were to build a biosphere, could one build it without mosquitoes and other pesty biting insects? It’s important, of course, for it could be that some annoying bug may be the key to the biosphere’s survival for all I know.
But if I could build a biosphere, I’d definitely build it without biting insects.
Then I’m not sure. I’d like to say that I’d make it so that the temperature never varied from 70 degrees and the humidity always sat at 25% relative. But I know that I’d get might tired of that after a while and I’d start to crave a really hot, dry day or a really cold, crisp evening. I’ve grown up in places that have actual seasons and I rather like that. If I could build it, however, I would ban the extremes. Hot dry day? Sure, but not over 90. Cold, crisp evening? Absolutely on occasion, but never below 35. And never, even any snow…
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A good indicator of humidity that many folks are not aware of is the dewpoint temperature. While relative humidity varies during the day, the dewpoint can give you an idea of how dry or how wet the air is. In fact, the dew point temperature can point pretty closely to the low temperature one can expect for the evening. Last night’s dewpoint for Accomac was 50, and the records that I can access show 50 as the low for the airport. July dewpoints in the 70s reflect a very humid airmass. I’ve been enjoying Richmond dewpoints in the 50s this month. We’ve had October’s with 90 plus temps; I really hope that doesn’t happen this year!
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Yes, I was tracking dewpoint most of the summer and it was high. For nearly all of August the dewpoint was in the low 70’s and I’d experience 100% humidity I’m the morning. The grass would sole my sneakers even as late at 10am. Thankfully, it’s much nicer now.
Interesting – I hadn’t been aware of the idea of dew point approximating the overnight low. I’ll have to remember that when, someday, I move back to a “normal” climate. That particular model breaks down a bit out here in the desert of Arizona – typical daytime temps for the last month or so, 104-110 degrees Fahrenheit, typical dew points in the 30’s, overnight lows in the high 80’s.
And trust me, for a boy that grew up mostly in New England and lived the last 15 years in Oregon, all of those numbers are wholly new to me!
I guess there’s a point where daytime heating exceeds the ability for cooling in the evening to reach it’s potential. Last night in Ashland, VA the dewpoint dropped to 49 and the low temperature made it down to 51. I have noticed in the winter, when the air is driest, the dewpoint and the overnight low track each other almost exactly, at least here in the mid-Atlantic.
Another interesting phenomenon is to watch “heat index”. Over the past summer, there were a number of times where the Eastern Shore index would exceed that of Phoenix – it was all about the humidity.
I remember working in a hangar in the dessert with a temp of 102. It was so dry, we were able to use “swamp coolers” to lower the temp in the shop.
Everytime I think about moving back to the Maine, I force myself to remember summer humidity and mosquitoes. Here. outside of Seattle. I work outisde every day and so far this season I have had only one mosquito bite. Which is one more than last year. So my biosphere would DEFINITELY be Seattle-like inn that it would be mosquito-less (and black fly-less, and flea-less and no leaches in the ponds either). However I do miss LOTS of snow and temps below freezing and a long fall season and frost on the pumpkin. MY biosphere would need all of those. My biosphere would also have some way of snow sublimation so the snow would not melt and make spring mud. Dry is good. Except in the veggie garden. My biosphere would somehow ensure that my veggie garden has a nice moist and warm microclimate. Actually I do not need a biosphere – I need a winning lottery ticket so I can spend my winters in the Canadian Rockies, my falls in New England, my summers in the PNW and my springs in the desert SW.
It’s all about that dew point and the RH…