Wind-chill scale to change

IQALUIT — This December meteorologists will start using a new system to describe windchill.

Windchill ratings are supposed to reflect the cooling effect of cold, windy conditions on the human body. Meteorologists say the new system for reporting windchill is more accurate because it’s based on how human skin reacts to wind.

The old scale was based on how water reacts to wind.

Using the new system, windchills will also be rated closer to the ground, where wind is generally less intense.

Scientists have also fixed -18C as the temperature at which bare skin freezes in 15 minutes.