Curriculum
Course: Elements of the Weather
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Text lesson

Humidity

Humidity refers to the amount of water vapour in the atmosphere. If there is a lot of water vapour in the air, the air is said to be humid. Relative humidity is measured as a percentage. For instance, humidity of 40% means that the air is holding 40% of the total amount of water it can hold at this temperature.

Humidity is measured using an instrument called a hygrometer. Look at the image below. This is one type of hygrometer.

 

Today there are modern hygrometers like the one shown in the picture below.

This small device measures humidity and temperature.