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Colloquially, "room temperature" is a range of
air temperature Atmospheric temperature is a measure of temperature at different levels of the Earth's atmosphere. It is governed by many factors, including incoming solar radiation, humidity and altitude. When discussing surface air temperature, the annual atm ...
s that most people prefer for indoor settings. It feels comfortable to a person when they are wearing typical indoor clothing. Human comfort can extend beyond this range depending on
humidity Humidity is the concentration of water vapor present in the air. Water vapor, the gaseous state of water, is generally invisible to the human eye. Humidity indicates the likelihood for precipitation, dew, or fog to be present. Humidity dep ...
, air circulation and other factors. Food or beverages may be served at ''room temperature'', meaning neither heated nor cooled. In certain fields, like
science and engineering Engineering is the use of scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad range of more speciali ...
, and within a particular context, ''room temperature'' can mean different agreed-upon ranges. In contrast, ''ambient temperature'' is the actual temperature, as measured by a
thermometer A thermometer is a device that measures temperature or a temperature gradient (the degree of hotness or coldness of an object). A thermometer has two important elements: (1) a temperature sensor (e.g. the bulb of a mercury-in-glass thermometer ...
, of the air (or other medium and surroundings) in any particular place. The ambient temperature (e.g. an unheated room in winter) may be very different from an ideal ''room temperature''.


Comfort temperatures

''
The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language ''The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language'' (''AHD'') is an American dictionary of English published by Boston publisher Houghton Mifflin, the first edition of which appeared in 1969. Its creation was spurred by the controversy o ...
'' identifies room temperature as around , while the ''
Oxford English Dictionary The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' (''OED'') is the first and foundational historical dictionary of the English language, published by Oxford University Press (OUP). It traces the historical development of the English language, providing a co ...
'' states that it is "conventionally taken as about ". The ideal room temperature may vary by place and culture; studies from
Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...
show a comfortable temperature range of , comfortably cool and comfortably warm . Owing to variations in humidity and (likely) clothing, recommendations for summer and winter may vary; a suggested typical range for summer is , with that for winter being . Some studies have suggested that thermal comfort preferences of men and women may differ significantly, with women on average preferring higher ambient temperatures. In the recent past it was common for house temperatures to be kept below the comfort level; a 1978 UK study found average indoor home temperatures to be while Japan in 1980 had median home temperatures of to .


Health effects

The
World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of ...
in 1987 found that comfortable indoor temperatures between were not associated with health risks for healthy adults with appropriate clothing, humidity, and other factors. For infants, elderly, and those with significant health problems, a minimum was recommended. Temperatures lower than with humidity above 65% were associated with respiratory hazards including allergies. The WHO's 2018 guidelines give a strong recommendation that a minimum of is a "safe and well-balanced indoor temperature to protect the health of general populations during cold seasons", while a higher minimum may be necessary for vulnerable groups including children, the elderly, and people with cardiorespiratory disease and other chronic illnesses. The recommendation regarding risk of exposure to high indoor temperatures is only "conditional". Minimal-risk high temperatures range from about depending on the region, with maximum acceptable temperatures between .


Definitions in science and industry

Temperature ranges are defined as ''room temperature'' for certain products and processes in industry, science, and consumer goods. For instance, for the shipping and storage of pharmaceuticals, the
United States Pharmacopeia The ''United States Pharmacopeia'' (''USP'') is a pharmacopeia (compendium of drug information) for the United States published annually by the United States Pharmacopeial Convention (usually also called the USP), a nonprofit organization that ...
-National Formulary (USP-NF) defines ''controlled room temperature'' as between , with excursions between allowed, provided the mean kinetic temperature does not exceed . The
European Pharmacopoeia The ''European Pharmacopoeia'' (''Pharmacopoeia Europaea'', ''Ph. Eur.'') is a major regional pharmacopoeia which provides common quality standards throughout the pharmaceutical industry in Europe to control the quality of medicines, and the su ...
defines it as being simply , and the Japanese Pharmacopeia defines "ordinary temperature" as , with room temperature being . Merriam-Webster gives as a medical definition a range of as being suitable for human occupancy, and at which laboratory experiments are usually performed.


See also

* Standard conditions for temperature and pressure * *
Indoor air quality Indoor air quality (IAQ) is the air quality within and around buildings and structures. IAQ is known to affect the health, comfort, and well-being of building occupants. Poor indoor air quality has been linked to sick building syndrome, reduce ...


References

{{Authority control Environmental engineering Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning Science experiments Atmospheric temperature