East Coast
Apr/090
Why does the east coast have high temp humidity and the West Coast not?
I am from California and just moved to Florida. I am used to 80 degrees being dry and comfortable, not thick and crippling. Why does the east coast have a higher dew point and lower humidity than the west coast?
Meant to say higher dew point and higher humidity.
The continental shelf (shallower parts of the ocean extending from the land) goes a lot farther out into the ocean on the east coast, shown in the pink parts of this map: http://www.bigelow.org/virtual/shelf.jpg
Shallow water heats faster than deep water. Also, the ocean current on the east coast comes up from the equator, where as on the west it comes down from the Arctic. Both of these factors make the ocean water considerably warmer on the east coast. When water is warmer, it evaporates at a higher rate, thus causing more water in the air, and more humidity.
I hope that helped!
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