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Related: About this forum"Corn sweat" may exacerbate heat impacts in the Midwest, Plains this weekend.
"Corn sweat" may exacerbate heat impacts in the Midwest, Plains this weekend.
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"Corn sweat" may exacerbate heat impacts in the Midwest, Plains this weekend. (Original Post)
mahatmakanejeeves
Jul 2020
OP
Kali
(55,006 posts)1. WP article
https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2020/07/15/corn-sweat-may-exacerbate-heat-impacts-midwest-this-weekend/
Corn is a major influencer of summertime weather in parts of the Midwest and northern Plains, along a swath of the nations heartland aptly dubbed the Corn Belt. Corn, soybean and other crops release water into the atmosphere through evapotranspiration. This is a cooling mechanism for the plant akin to sweating in humans.
That moisture gets soaked up by the lower atmosphere, potentially bringing unbearable tropical humidity levels during the height of summer, along with hazardous heat index levels. The dynamic is going to be on full, uncomfortable display in the coming days as a heat wave roasts this region.
[What in the world is corn sweat?]
In the summertime, a single acre of corn can sweat about 4,000 gallons a day enough to fill a typical residential swimming pool in less than a week. Hotter conditions favor even more evapotranspiration, the heat combining with corn-induced humidity to bring sultry conditions at times juicer than the soupiest air masses of South Florida.
That moisture gets soaked up by the lower atmosphere, potentially bringing unbearable tropical humidity levels during the height of summer, along with hazardous heat index levels. The dynamic is going to be on full, uncomfortable display in the coming days as a heat wave roasts this region.
[What in the world is corn sweat?]
In the summertime, a single acre of corn can sweat about 4,000 gallons a day enough to fill a typical residential swimming pool in less than a week. Hotter conditions favor even more evapotranspiration, the heat combining with corn-induced humidity to bring sultry conditions at times juicer than the soupiest air masses of South Florida.
Bayard
(22,035 posts)2. I gotta think this happens with all plants in hot climates....
What's it like in the Amazon? (inquiring minds and all that).
SharonClark
(10,014 posts)3. Interesting. I wonder how that works when there
are drought conditions. Do the plants curl their leaves to avoid giving off needed moisture?