There will be no wind chill warnings in Iowa next winter

Iowans will be hearing some new terms as the winter winds begin to blow.

National Weather Service meteorologist Chad Hahn says the agency is ditching some familiar terms in favor of slightly more direct language.

“You may be familiar with the Wind Chill Warning and the Wind Chill Watch, which will evolve into Extreme Cold Warnings and Extreme Cold Warnings,” says Hahn, “and similarly, the Wind Chill Warning will be renamed the Cold Weather Advisory.”

When the air temperature is ten degrees below zero, that's pretty cold regardless of whether there's a breeze or not. Therefore, according to Hahn, it makes sense to have an alternative to wind chill warnings when it is not windy.

“Everything will fall under the extreme cold umbrella,” Hahn says. “Cold is cold, regardless of whether it is blowing at 50 mph or whether the wind is calm. There is still the same risk outside if you are exposed to the elements for long periods of time.”

The term “wind chill” isn’t going away because Hahn says it’s still very useful in the winter months to describe what the air temperature feels like in a combination of cold temperatures and persistent wind.

“We will continue to use wind chills. “In fact, the criteria are still determined by the felt temperature, the apparent temperature, which includes the wind chill,” says Hahn. “On the warm side, we look at the perceived temperature as a heat index.”

It's possible we'll hear something about the heat index again in a few days, as the forecast predicts parts of Iowa will see unseasonably warm high temperatures in the low 90s through the weekend.