Weather cooler, but feels hotter

Anyone who remembers the Fourth of July last year might have felt a chill in the air Friday. The high temperature was actually a dozen degrees cooler this July Fourth than last year, when the mercury peaked at 122.9 degrees.

According to weather data on the Lake Havasu City Web site, Friday's daytime temperature topped out at 110.5.

But higher than normal humidity probably made it feel a lot hotter.

The amount of moisture in the air is one factor that contributes to how hot it feels outside, along with the intensity of the sun, wind and temperature, according to meteorologist Ken Reeves, of Accuweather.

"(Humidity) has a tremendous effect on the comfort level," Reeves said. "For example, (Thursday) the dew point (in Lake Havasu City) was 35. (Friday) afternoon it was 54. That equates to about twice as much water vapor in the air, and that has a tremendous impact."

Ironically, it was that greater amount of moisture in the air that resulted in the lower temperature, even though it felt hotter, he said.

Reeves attributed the increased moisture to the slightly early appearance of the monsoon, during which moist air is drawn into the U.S. from the Gulf of Mexico.

Another factor in how hot we feel is the UV index, Reeves said. That’s a measure of how much ultraviolet radiate reaches the Earth, an indication of how likely someone is to get a sunburn.

The top of the UV index scale is 15. Friday's UV index in Lake Havasu City reached a high of 13 at 12:28 p.m.

"(That) can have an impact on comfort level, too," Reeves said. "Given the same conditions in January versus now, in July — even if you could reproduce the same temperatures, which you couldn't — it would not feel as hot."

Accuweather is predicting that high temperatures will climb back toward record levels early next week as the air dries out and a high-pressure system builds over the area, Reeves said. As of Friday, meteorologists were forecasting high temperatures of 121 for Monday and 120 for Tuesday.

You may contact the reporter at dparker@havasunews.com.

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