Re: Baseball, air pressure, and humidity

["Paul Camp" <pjcamp@coastal.edu>]

Oh Dear! Another baseball war in the making.

According to Adair's book, humidity has little discernable effect on 
the flight of a baseball in itself. However, if the baseball is 
stored in conditions of high humidity, its coefficient of restitution 
will be reduced so it will have a correspondingly reduced velocity  
coming off the bat and that may give the appearance of reduced 
"carry." Of course, all the significant effects occurred at the 
moment the ball was struck.

What may have given rise to this idea is experience gained on  
humid nights when the cooler evening air is a little deader -- less 
wind to help carry the ball along.


>    During today's Yankee/Baltimore game the announcers said that the
> ball was carrying further than it did yesterday. 
>
>    Can this be true? Can air pressure or humidity have a noticeable
> effect 
> on air friction. Or is it perhaps that humidity effects the resiliancy
> of 
> the ball?
>
>    Do any of you have any knowledge; either based on theory or from
> playing the game?  
>
>   I'm looking forward to your responses.
>
> Ed Schweber (email: edschweb@ix.netcom.com)



Paul J. Camp                   "The Beauty of the Universe
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