What is humidity

Climate describes the average weather conditions of a particular place over a 30 year period. All places on earth have their own climates. Different from weather events, which are short-term and temporary phenomenon, climates are usually steady and predictable, and shape how organisms and human civilizations evolve and adapt in any given region. However, climates are not always permanent, and can change drastically due to human activity.

Explore the world's climates and how they affect local regions and the planet with this curated collection of resources. Humidity, or the amount of moisture in the air, changes based on air temperature, warm bodies of water, and air movement. Dew is the moisture that forms at night when objects or the ground outside cool down by radiating, or emitting, their heat. Create your climate! Terraforma allows you to create the world around you to fit the perfect climate for your population.

With knowing the location, season, and time of day, you can change the terrain to fit their climate needs. Join our community of educators and receive the latest information on National Geographic's resources for you and your students. Skip to content. Twitter Facebook Pinterest Google Classroom. Encyclopedic Entry Vocabulary. Tropical waterfalls are humid places. Media Credits The audio, illustrations, photos, and videos are credited beneath the media asset, except for promotional images, which generally link to another page that contains the media credit.

Last Updated Jan. Media If a media asset is downloadable, a download button appears in the corner of the media viewer. Text Text on this page is printable and can be used according to our Terms of Service. Interactives Any interactives on this page can only be played while you are visiting our website. Related Resources. Abiotic Factors. View Collection. All About Humidity. View Article. When the temperature is higher, the air can hold more water vapor, meaning that the warmer the climate, the higher the humidity level can be.

For example, a densely saturated amount of air may contain 0. Colder air cannot handle as much moisture as warmer air. Consider for example a winters day. On the other hand, warm air can handle more moisture than cooler air. If you cool it down to below That is why air conditioning systems often have a dehumidifier built-in. Without them, your walls in the home would be soaking wet during the summer.

Unable to hold any more, it would rain. Colder climates often have lower humidity levels than warmer climates as colder air holds less moisture than warm air. In winter, humidity levels tend to be typically lower.

Whereas in summer, humidity levels will be higher, as air can hold more water vapor at a higher temperature. Small everyday tasks can affect humidity levels. Cooking, cleaning, dishwashing, breathing, clothes washing, showering, and other indoor processes release moisture into the indoor air, making indoor humidity levels rise.

Maintaining healthy humidity levels inside your house is vital. As explained below, poor humidity levels can have an impact on your health and the house itself. Too much humidity can cause dampness and mold, too little means the air becomes dry and uncomfortable. But what, exactly, is humidity? What does it have to do with moisture? Why does it make some days feel hotter than usual, and some days colder? Can it really affect my health? When water evaporates, it rises and disperses into the surrounding air as the gaseous water vapor.

Humidity is the presence of water vapor in the atmosphere. The more water evaporates in a given area, the more water vapor rises into the air, and the higher the humidity of that area is. Hot places tend to be more humid than cool places because heat causes water to evaporate faster. It might sound like water evaporation is a bad thing. Liquid water is useful, plus, you know, essential for all life. Believe it or not, though, water evaporation and humidity serve a critical function of the natural world.

When liquid water evaporates into gaseous water vapor, it has completed one third of the all-important water cycle. When water vapor rises, water molecules in the vapor combine with each other and with other particles like dust, salt, and smoke. The higher the water vapor rises, the thinner the air around it becomes.