Wind Chill

This part of the FAQ will explore a phenomenon that affects everyone regardless of their genetic makeup. This affect is called wind chill. Many people have heard of wind chill before. It is often used casually to embellish how cold it is outside. Statements like, “it’s about 10° outside, but it’s closer to -20° with the added wind chill.” But how does someone figure out how cold it is when it’s windy? Does wind chill change the air temperature? The National Weather Service states that wind chill refers to how fast your body will lose heat at a given temperature and wind speed. More importantly, it predicts how fast frostbite will occur in those conditions. When thought of in this sense, wind chill becomes a valuable tool. The actual formula for wind chill is still quite complex and requires knowledge in physics. However, Adam Keeton, NEED CITATION HERE, developed a good rule of thumb. His Formula is “wind chill temperature = outside temperature – 1.5* wind speed in mph.” This will give you a rough estimate of the climate and let you schedule your excursions and activities accordingly. While wind chill might not be an important factor if you are hiking in the woods, if you are skiing or snowmobiling wind chill can be quite sever and may lead to frostbite.