10/15/2018 What Is Dew Point?

| Relative Humidity

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What Is Dew
TECH 
Point?
HEALTH  Contributor | February 11, 2014 09:50am ET
By Marc Lallanilla, Live Science

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The dew point is the temperature at which air is saturated with water vapor, which is the
gaseous state of water.

When air has reached the dew-point temperature at a particular pressure, the water vapor in
the air is in equilibrium with liquid water, meaning water vapor is condensing at the same rate
at which liquid water is evaporating.

Below the dew point, liquid water will begin to condense on solid surfaces (such as blades of
grass) or around solid particles in the atmosphere (such as dust or salt), forming clouds or
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10/15/2018 What Is Dew Point? | Relative Humidity

fog.

Dew point is closely linked to relative humidity, which is the ratio of the pressure of water
vapor in a parcel of air relative to the saturation pressure of water vapor in that same parcel
of air at a speci c temperature. Relative humidity (RH) is expressed as a percentage.

The relative humidity is 100 percent when the dew point and the temperature are the same. If
the temperature drops any further, condensation will result, and liquid water will begin to
form.

Compared to relative humidity, dew point is frequently cited as a more accurate way of
measuring the humidity and comfort of the air, since it is an absolute measurement (unlike
relative humidity).

Most people are comfortable with a dew-point temperature of 60 degrees Fahrenheit (16
degrees Celsius) or lower. At a higher dew point of, for example, 70 F (21 C), most people feel
hot or "sticky" because the amount of water vapor in the air slows the evaporation of
perspiration and keeps the body from cooling.

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