It's hotter than Death Valley here

[2strokeNorthstar]

The only people who say that are the ones who are not in Death Valley (or any other Southwest Desert for that matter).

I’ve spent a lot of time in El Centro, CA, right near where @Chris142 lives.

There is no comparison between the “feels like” temperature and what it is actually like there in the summer.

The “feels like” is based on a set of assumptions, like wind chill, and they fail to take into account that blazing sun that the Central Valley gets. You will die much faster in the desert than you will in DC. It’s just that simple.

So, no, it is not “hotter” where you live than it is in Death Valley.

Came here to say this. Experience over 120 air temps and the talk about the "feels like" I was in Palm Springs, got in my car, temp said 126. My chip repaired windshield couldn't take it and the crack spread all the way to the edge that day. It lasted a couple years anyway.

 

[Highlander 1459]

Came here to say this. Experience over 120 air temps and the talk about the "feels like" I was in Palm Springs, got in my car, temp said 126. My chip repaired windshield couldn't take it and the crack spread all the way to the edge that day. It lasted a couple years anyway.

I don't think anyone is here to say 125F degree F for a dry bulb temperature reading is going to feel cool.
But the people who doubt the feels like thing dont seem to realize that if your body cools itself off from evaporation
and you are in a place with a slow evaporation rate ( this can be measured as Wet Bulb Temperature)
you will suffer just as bad if not worse.

for instance the wet bulb temp in Death Valley is in this chart and you can see a person gets about 50 degrees of cooling from evaporation, aka the wet bulb temp is below 70 even though the dry bulb reading is in the 120's...

whereas you can be in a stinking fetid mosquito infested swamp like the Florida Panther Refuge and get literally zero cooling from evaporation. best evaporative cooling might cool down to is 75.. but if a person is out in the sun you can throw that out the window.... and this isn't even a bad day... sometimes the wet bulb reading is in the low 80's... Most environmental research indicates that prolonged exposure to wet bulb temps above 80 to 92 is unsurvivable for humans

 

[GON]

It amazes me how mild the coastline of California and the PNW stay in the summer, especially SF and further north. Crescent City, CA will hit a balmy 61 degrees tomorrow

Even in SoCal, the beaches are only hitting the low to mid-70s this week. Of course, you don't have to go far inland to add 20-30 degrees to that.

36 hours ago, I was in Tacoma, WA a humid 98 degrees. I am in LA today, a very comfortable 84 degrees....

 

[dishdude]

Interesting read.

https://www.otherhand.org/home-page/search-and-rescue/the-hunt-for-the-death-valley-germans/

 

[vavavroom]

69° right now. I'll be driving topless.

 

[thunderfog]

This is how hot our non cooled metal shop was a few days ago in the shade. I read where death valley may break the 134* record this week.

View attachment 228722

They have highs forecast near 130F for the max in that area. While close to 134F, those last 4 degrees are *very* hard to get compared to going from, say, 94F to 98F.

 

[paulo57509]

I worked with a dude who was from Ethiopia. When I moved to the Central Valley, he asked me how hot it gets out here. Without thinking I told him it was "Africa hot". He thought that was hilarious.

I wouldn't mind being in Addis Ababa right now.

 

[Highlander 1459]

I worked with a dude who was from Ethiopia. When I moved to the Central Valley, he asked me how hot it gets out here. Without thinking I told him it was "Africa hot". He thought that was hilarious.

I wouldn't mind being in Addis Ababa right now.

View attachment 229718

62 centigrade?

 

[paulo57509]

62 centigrade?

Fahrenheit.

 

[Astro14]

I worked with a dude who was from Ethiopia. When I moved to the Central Valley, he asked me how hot it gets out here. Without thinking I told him it was "Africa hot". He thought that was hilarious.

I wouldn't mind being in Addis Ababa right now.

View attachment 229718

Addis Ababa is up in the mountains. It is nothing like the coastal part of the country.

 

[Astro14]

I don't think anyone is here to say 125F degree F for a dry bulb temperature reading is going to feel cool.
But the people who doubt the feels like thing dont seem to realize that if your body cools itself off from evaporation
and you are in a place with a slow evaporation rate ( this can be measured as Wet Bulb Temperature)
you will suffer just as bad if not worse.

for instance the wet bulb temp in Death Valley is in this chart and you can see a person gets about 50 degrees of cooling from evaporation, aka the wet bulb temp is below 70 even though the dry bulb reading is in the 120's...
View attachment 229679

whereas you can be in a stinking fetid mosquito infested swamp like the Florida Panther Refuge and get literally zero cooling from evaporation. best evaporative cooling might cool down to is 75.. but if a person is out in the sun you can throw that out the window.... and this isn't even a bad day... sometimes the wet bulb reading is in the low 80's... Most environmental research indicates that prolonged exposure to wet bulb temps above 80 to 92 is unsurvivable for humans

View attachment 229680

Thanks.

But I think most of us get the simple physics of latent heat of vaporization.

What it fails to take into account is the effect of the sun itself. That is a huge factor.

All of your discussion is true in the shade. But only in the shade.

Once out of the shade, the far greater insolation makes that “feels like” temperature wildly inaccurate.

 

[Al]

Hot weather broke in PA

 

[Highlander 1459]

Thanks.

But I think most of us get the simple physics of latent heat of vaporization.

What it fails to take into account is the effect of the sun itself. That is a huge factor.

All of your discussion is true in the shade. But only in the shade.

Once out of the shade, the far greater insolation makes that “feels like” temperature wildly inaccurate.

the Heat Index is calculated in the shade. but why pretend it isn't a factor to human survival.?

I've been in both places... 100 degrees in Moab feels more tolerable than 95 degrees in Memphis.

 

[greenjp]

Well we finally had an actual rainy day here in MoCo, mild high of about 80. Back to the mid 90s for another stretch starting Sunday

This is from what I gather the hottest summer since 2012 around here so it's not just in our heads

 

[Al]

Drought in Central Pa.

 

[ZZman]

Our daughter is in Colorado and it will be almost 100 degrees for 3-4 days

 

[Astro14]

the Heat Index is calculated in the shade. but why pretend it isn't a factor to human survival.?

I've been in both places... 100 degrees in Moab feels more tolerable than 95 degrees in Memphis.

Never said it wasn’t a factor.

Just said it wasn’t accurate.

That’s because it isn’t a complete picture or a complete basis for comparison - it ignores the effect of the sun itself.

 

[Highlander 1459]

Never said it wasn’t a factor.

Just said it wasn’t accurate.

That’s because it isn’t a complete picture or a complete basis for comparison - it ignores the effect of the sun itself.

actually, this is what you said Quote :
There is no comparison between the “feels like” temperature and what it is actually like there in the summer.
The “feels like” is based on a set of assumptions, like wind chill, and they fail to take into account that blazing sun that the Central Valley gets. You will die much faster in the desert than you will in DC. It’s just that simple. QUOTE


Astro, I stated earlier Heat Index is calculated in the shade.. and humidity, dew point and wet and dry bulb bulb temperatures are not asumptions but are used in the calculation .. so yeah, it is hot in Death Valley... there are plenty of other places in our country that are hot and the weather can kill. ..

as far as solar radiation , that can be measured too but simply saying the heat of the sun in Death Valley is worse than the heat of the sun in other places does is just a claim not backed up with any data.

What surprises me is usually you dont say stuff like this, surprised coming from a smart guy like you.