HONG KONG , June 11, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- A study conducted by a research team led by Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU) has discovered that there is a trend of increasing humidity in the northern part of China which is not observed in the south. This phenomenon will ultimately become a prominent factor in determining the occurrence of extreme hot and humid weather, and lead to widespread heat stress across the entire eastern part of China , the most populous region of the country, by the end of this century. The research findings have been published in the international academic journal Nature Communications .
Humidity determines heat stress difference Apart from heat, humidity also determines the extent of heat stress felt by humans because it affects our ability to control our body temperature by sweating. In China , while heat stress is recorded in different parts of the country in summer, the relatively humid weather in the south is believed to have resulted in more frequent occurrence of heat stress with severe health and economic impacts. However, regional trends in the levels of humidity and how they co-relate with extreme hot events are not well established.
To assess how humidity affects heat stress in China , a research team led by Professor Gao Meng , Professor of the Department of Geography at HKBU, analysed the wet bulb temperatures in northern and southern China recorded in the 40 years from 1979 to 2018. Wet -bulb temperature is read by a thermometer covered .
