Ross Grady
I hate a lot of things in this world, and “Feels Like” temperature malarkey is one of them.

I understand what they think they are trying to convey — essentially, it is humid and sunny at the same time, so when I step outside it’s gonna be gross.

But I have lived in the Southern USA for 45 years. If it is July, it is gonna be sunny and humid as fuck. So it “feels like” exactly what it always feels like.

There is clearly some referent that goes completely unmentioned, and it drives me up the fuckin wall. It “feels like” 89 WHERE?

Like, 82 in July with 77% humidity in North Carolina feels like exactly that. Are you trying to tell me that it feels like 89 in someplace else, where it is less humid generally? Like, I dunno, Columbus, Ohio? In what world is that useful to me?
Jul 12, 2025 at 1:54pmWeb
Show threadTheJen will not complyJul 12, 2025

@rossgrady They dumbed down the heat index because people are dumb.

https://meteorology101.com/heat-index/

| Meteorology101

With basic climate regions around the world, there are some places where the weather is considered hot. But just heat alone does not make high temperatures a threat. There is an old saying stating "It's not the heat, it's the humidity". Well, actually it's both heat AND humidity.

Meteorology101
Show threadRoss GradyJul 12, 2025
@TheJen I have the same complaint about the Heat Index. It only makes sense if you're used to average humidity levels that are markedly different than the current humidity level where you are.

So: Useful for travelers (but *only* if they clearly explain what "norm" humidity the index was based on) but if you live in a place year-round, it's just adding needless confusion.

I haven't read R.G. Steadman's original paper, but I'll bet money he was from some dry place & wound up spending time in a more humid location in the summer.
Show threadTheJen will not complyJul 12, 2025
@rossgrady Um. Ok.
Show threadGary GJul 12, 2025
@rossgrady I also experienced maybe the opposite? Living in Arizona, when it was 115°, it felt like 115°. Like sticking your head into an oven
Show threadLisa Lorenzin KR4LFE (she/her)Jul 12, 2025
@rossgrady heat index / "feels like" is really helpful to us because we do lots of strenuous sweaty outdoor activity (climbing, biking, backpacking, trail maintenance, etc) in the summer. Humidity level makes a huge difference for proper planning to manage hydration & avoid heat exhaustion. It's just a convenience to avoid having to plot that curve on our own based on temp & humidity, but it's a convenience I appreciate!
Show threadRoss GradyJul 12, 2025
@llorenzin yes but you & I live like 5 miles apart and when is it NOT unbearably humid in the summer around here? :)

If they’re gonna have a modifier for us, it’d be more useful in the other direction. Like: 88 degrees but it’s weirdly dry, like 40% humidity, so it’ll feel like 82 . . .
Show threadLisa Lorenzin KR4LFE (she/her)Jul 12, 2025
@rossgrady I get where you're coming from, and it makes sense! I think we may just have different definitions of "unbearably humid" - and are possibly also looking for different things from our weather info.
Say it's 75°F and 95% humidity when Mike runs in the morning - that's disgusting but not dangerous. But if we go ride or climb that afternoon, and it's 95°F and 75% humidity, that's disgusting *and* dangerous. He's unlikely to get heat exhaustion on his morning run; we're much more likely to get it in the afternoon, if we aren't careful. And it does seem like this has gotten more extreme over the past couple decades with climate change, so my compensating controls from the past may no longer be adequate. (I.e. I'm much more likely to carry and consume electrolyte replacement now than I was 20 years ago... Both because I have more clue now, and because I believe the environment makes it more necessary now.)
Personally I value the "feels like" because it reminds me to take into consideration the effect humidity will have on my ability to shed heat while recreating... You may just be more inherently aware of that, and not need the reminder, but I'll take all the help I can get. 😊
Show threadRoss GradyJul 12, 2025
@llorenzin I think I would find it much more valuable if the app on my phone — which absolutely 100% knows exactly where I live and spend most of my time — would leverage that data to give me a forecast that’s like “yo it is gonna be hotter and more humid than you are used to” or, if traveling, it’s like “you are in the mountains so 78 is gonna feel like 72 where you normally are”

Like, this is the future liberals want?
Show threadLisa Lorenzin KR4LFE (she/her)Jul 12, 2025
@rossgrady oh hell yes. Hyperlocal forecasting has so much potential! I'd love to see what they're able to do with e.g. the CAMALIOT data in a few years... https://thisjustinfromfranklinwi.com/2025/06/28/saturday-special-06-28-2025-the-future-of-weather-forecasting-is-hyperlocal/
Saturday Special (06/28/2025): The Future of Weather Forecasting Is Hyperlocal

On a sunny spring afternoon in Virginia Beach, Va., I’m waiting on a package delivery from a big-box retailer. But today, I’m not looking for a truck or the neighborhood postal carrier; I’m watchin…

This Just In... From Franklin, WI
Show threadNaomi PJul 12, 2025
@rossgrady I grew up in humid parts, and when I used to go visit family in places that were dryer, 90°F with 10% humidity felt cooler than 90°F with 95% humidity. That’s what the feels like is about.
Show threadRoss GradyJul 12, 2025
@gannet yeah and that is only really useful if you are visiting somewhere you don’t usually visit. Here, 90 degrees and 65% humidity feels like 90 degrees to me :)

If I were visiting Phoenix it would probably be useful to know that 105 will feel about like 90 at home!