Windchill
by pblpmp on 12/29/01 at 16:28:06

Regarding Wind Chill Factor: Does this calculation only apply to human "Bodies" or to bodies in general? e.g. Is the temperature of a hood ornament on a car driving 60 miles an hour the same temperature as the air or is it windchilled as much as my hand sticking out the window feels?

Re: Windchill
by Robert Fogt on 12/31/01 at 11:55:28

Windchill effects everything, but not like you think. Windchill effects the cooling rate of an object.

For example, if you heat a piece of metal up to 100 degrees, then set it outside where it is 30 degrees, it will cool at a certain rate. If the wind is blowing, it will cool faster, but never get colder than 30 degrees.

In your hood ornament example, once the hood ornament has cooled to the same temperature as the air, the wind will no longer effect it.

Re: Windchill
by richard duke on 01/24/02 at 14:33:55

Windchill factors are quite complicated.  The current Weatherwise magazine has an exhaustive discussion.  It is currently on-line at http://www.weatherwise.org/jf02.henson.html .  I do not know how long Weatherwise keeps articles on-line.

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