Why Humidity Matters

Although well known weather parameters such as temperature, rainfall and wind speed can have a dramatic impact on a large variety of human endeavors, another can have a surprisingly dramatic impact.

Humidity, the amount of water vapor in the air, plays a surprisingly significant role in our daily lives, impacting everything from human comfort to industrial processes.

Humidity and People

At its most basic, humidity influences how we perceive temperature. A hot day feels even hotter with high humidity because the air is already saturated with moisture, hindering the body's natural cooling mechanism – sweat evaporation. When sweat can't evaporate readily, we feel sticky, uncomfortable, and overheated. Conversely, low humidity can lead to dry skin, irritated sinuses, and even increased susceptibility to respiratory issues.

The ideal relative humidity range for human comfort generally falls between 40% and 60%. Maintaining this level indoors contributes to a healthier and more pleasant environment. For example, optimal humidity levels can help prevent the spread of airborne viruses, which thrive in overly dry conditions.

Humidity and Industry

Beyond personal comfort, humidity plays a critical role in various industries. In agriculture, humidity directly affects plant growth and crop yields. Too much moisture can lead to fungal diseases, while too little can stunt growth. Greenhouses and indoor farms carefully monitor and control humidity to create the perfect environment for specific crops.

Manufacturing processes are also highly sensitive to humidity. In the electronics industry, excessive moisture can cause corrosion and damage sensitive components. Pharmaceutical companies require precise humidity control during drug production and storage to maintain product integrity and efficacy. Even industries like textiles and paper production need to manage humidity levels to ensure material quality and prevent damage during processing.

Here are a few interesting facts demonstrating the power of humidity:

• Human hair is a natural hygrometer: Hair stretches in high humidity and shrinks in low humidity.
• Humidity affects sound: Sound travels faster in humid air because water vapor is less dense than the other primary components of air (nitrogen and oxygen).
• The Atacama desert is one of the driest places on earth. The extreme aridity is caused by a combination of factors including a rain shadow effect from the Andes Mountains, and the cold, offshore Humboldt Current, which limits the amount of water vapour in the air.

Understanding and tracking humidity is, therefore, essential for a wide variety of applications. OpenWeather provides a wide range of nuanced products to access accurate humidity data, past, present and forecast.

Our Bulk Download allows you to regularly download current weather, weather forecasts and their 7-day archives in JSON or CSV format.