Wind Chill Temperature Calculator

Wind chill equals 35.74 plus 0.6215 times T minus 35.75 times V to the 0.16 plus 0.4275 times T times V to the 0.16

Solution

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How It Works

Wind chill measures how cold it feels when wind accelerates heat loss from exposed skin. The NWS/Environment Canada formula (revised 2001) takes air temperature in °F and wind speed in mph to produce a single “feels like” temperature.

Wind removes the thin layer of warm air next to your skin much faster than still air. A 20 °F day with 25 mph wind feels like about −1 °F, making frostbite possible in as little as 30 minutes on exposed skin.

Example Problem

The air temperature is 5 °F and the wind speed is 30 mph. What is the wind chill?

  1. V0.16 = 300.16 ≈ 1.738
  2. WCT = 35.74 + 0.6215(5) − 35.75(1.738) + 0.4275(5)(1.738)
  3. WCT ≈ 35.74 + 3.11 − 62.13 + 3.71 = −19.6 °F

At this wind chill, frostbite can develop on exposed skin in about 10–30 minutes.

Frequently Asked Questions

How does wind chill work?

Wind increases the rate at which your body loses heat by stripping away the warm boundary layer of air on your skin. The wind chill formula quantifies this effect as an equivalent calm-air temperature that would produce the same heat loss rate.

At what wind chill does frostbite happen?

At wind chill values between 0 °F and −10 °F, frostbite can occur within 30 minutes. Below −25 °F, it can happen in 10–15 minutes. Below −45 °F, frostbite is possible in under 5 minutes on any exposed skin.

Does wind chill affect pipes or car engines?

No. Wind chill applies only to living organisms that generate heat. An inanimate object will cool faster in wind, but it will not drop below the actual air temperature. A car radiator at 20 °F will not freeze from wind chill alone.

What is the wind chill formula valid range?

The NWS equation is valid for air temperatures at or below 50 °F and wind speeds above 3 mph. At higher temperatures the formula is not meaningful because wind actually helps cool the body through evaporation and feels comfortable.

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