What is the difference between dewpoint and precipitation

Relative humidity is expressed as a percent and measures water vapor relative to the air temperature. Hence the term relative humidity. Warm air can hold more moisture than cold air. So, air with the same amount of absolute humidity will have a higher relative humidity if the air is cooler and lower relative humidity if the air is warmer. Dew point defines the point at which air will become saturated and condense. In other words, the point at which water droplets form.

If the air temperature is below freezing, the condensation will appear as frost or ice. This is especially noticeable in the summer during our monsoon. Across southeastern Arizona, in the summer months, we commonly see dew points in the upper 60s and lower 70s as sub-tropical moisture gets transported over the region.

These are the days when we have sweat rolling off our foreheads without even exerting ourselves. Weather conditions at locations with high dew point temperatures 65 or greater are likely to be uncomfortably humid. Terms for using data resources. CD-ROM available. Credits and Acknowledgments for WW This is because of the higher dew point. So if you want a real judge of just how "dry" or "humid" it will feel outside, look at the dew point instead of the RH.

The higher the dew point, the muggier it will feel. Our Office Staff Want a tour? Looking for a speaker? Please Contact Us. Please try another search. It is important that you keep in mind that the amount of discomfort or "humidity" you experience is a direct result of the actual amount of moisture in the air. And this is where relative humidity becomes a problem. Relative humidity is the result of a calculation of the amount of moisture relative to the temperature in the air, NOT the specific amount of moisture actually present in the air.

And this is what makes the dew point temperature a much more accurate and calculated indicator of the discomfort level you are experiencing. In the illustrator above, let's first take a look at Figure 1 to illustrate this. Yet, it is clear that Container B contains much more water vapor than Container A.

Since the temperature in Container B is much higher, allowing the air to hold more moisture, the discomfort level is substantially higher than that in Container A. This point is reinforced in Figure 2.

This means in both cases, the level of discomfort in Container B is higher than that of Container A. This simply shows that the higher temperature in Container B allows the air to contain a greater amount of water vapor, which is clearly reflected by the higher dew point temperatures in the illustration above.

As illustrated in the diagram above. This is a bit of a mind-bender, and it takes a while to wrap your head around it. You may need to reread this part a couple of times to make sense of it all. Just know that humidity definitely plays a big part in the discomfort levels we sometimes feel, but the actual discomfort level is much better reflected by the dew point temperature than the relative humidity. By now, you will have a much clearer picture of what exactly dew point is, how it is formed, as well as its effect on the environment.