Windchill index and military applications.
A new Windchill Apparent Temperature (WCT) has been introduced to replace the Windchill Index (WCI) and Windchill Equivalent Temperature (WCET) used to quantify cold exposure. From the time of its introduction the WCI has been criticized on scientific grounds. Despite a history of criticism, the WCI and the derived WCET have been adopted by military and civilian organizations to characterize the hazards presented by exposure to cold environments. However, the military has specific needs that differ from those of the civilian population. Thus, additional weather products and devices, including thermoregulatory models, environmental monitors, and personal physiological status monitors, are available to supplement the revised WCT.
Santee
William R
WR
Biophysics and Biomedical Modeling Division, U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine, Natick, MA 01760-5007, USA. william.santee@na.amedd.army.mil
D015982:Bias; D001833:Body Temperature Regulation; D003080:Cold Temperature / Q000009:adverse effects*; D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000032:analysis*; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards; D015444:Exercise; D006801:Humans; D007035:Hypothermia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology* / Q000517:prevention & control; D008887:Military Medicine; D008889:Military Personnel; D008991:Monitoring, Physiologic; D011187:Posture; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011481:Protective Clothing; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D013696:Temperature; D014481:United States; D014887:Weather; D014919:Wind