why does 60 degree water feel freezing compared to 60 degree air?
In: Chemistry
Water ‘communicates’ temperature more than air due to having a higher ‘specific heat’. So as it takes more energy to get water to 60 (up or down) than air the same distance of degrees the same direction, we feel the heat in the product (water) more than we do the air.
There are more in depth explanations about how our heat, heats the air near us more and faster, than the water. This is still due to the waters specific heat in comparison to air.
The more humidity (water) in air, the more it holds heat. This is why we actually use ‘relative humidity’ when we talk about air being humid. Technically 100% real humidity would be under water, and 0% doesn’t happen much as there is always some water in the air. So we use relative humidity as it is what makes sense to us relatively, when talking about the air. As the most humid air we can experience isn’t 100%, so some of the scale would be wasted and thus making specific observations less accurate. Ie 50 options (20-70) vs 0-100% relative humidity.
There are better more sciencey explanations.
Two reasons:
1. The water touches your skin everywhere because it gets through your clothes and
2. it conducts heat faster than air, which is a gas.
The air doesn’t touch your skin where it’s covered by clothes. There’s a layer of warm air (warmed by your skin) between you and the clothes you’re wearing that insulates you. Being nude in 60 degree weather would be pretty cold, but it would still take much longer to feel as cold as 60 degree water because water conducts heat much faster than air. Liquids conduct heat faster than gases and solids conduct heat faster than liquids. (Conductivity goes solid>liquid>plasma>gas, and it’s because of the way molecules line up in those states.).
This works the other way, too. You can survive for awhile in 140+ degree air (as long as it’s low enough humidity and you’re drinking enough water), but if you’re in a 140+ degree pool, you’re going to die pretty damn quickly. Like five to ten minutes to full-body deep-tissue burns…
Same reason a wooden spoon feels warmer than a metal spoon at the same temperature. Your body doesn’t sense temperature it senses heat transfer. In this case water conducts heat out of your body much faster than air can especially because it’s much denser than the air around you.
You can touch a really hot object and be fine so long as it is a poor conductor or of heat
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Heat water to 100° C and put your hand in it (no don’t), you’ll get burned. Heat your stove to 100° C and put your hand in it. Not a problem!
Liquid is more molecule dense than gas so it carries more heat with it.
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