HOUSTON – HAPPENING NOW: It’s all about the feels-like heat ahead of our next stormy pattern that looks to be Sunday through Tuesday. As our feels-like temps are expected to hit 103+ today (if not hotter in some spots) and with everyone talking about the World Cup — it’s only fair that a lot of folks have a lot of questions about the weather.
Including on a hot summer day — what’s the heat difference between grass and astroturf?
According to epturf.com, artificial turf lacks the living plants’ natural cooling mechanism (transpiration and evaporation). Newer AstroTurf systems now have reflective coatings, and cooling infills that can drop the temperature somewhat, but it’s still going to run hotter than grass — often 10-30°F or more on a blazing day, and sometimes up to 35-55°F hotter depending on the setup and sun exposure.
Good news for the players and fans — Houston Stadium for the World Cup has switched over to real natural grass for all the matches. No worries about that extra turf bake in the building!
Houston prepares for 2026 FIFA World Cup with massive NRG Stadium turf transformation
And heads up for Fan Fest in EaDo: The free FIFA Fan Festival is happening outdoors right — giant screens, live vibes, food and long lines. As our heat index is already climbing over 100 at times, and they’ve already reported some heat-related incidents. Stay hydrated, take breaks, and pace yourself out there!
It’s important to know the signs of Heat Exhaustion:
That also means traffic delays - so how can you try to save some time, stress and money?
All the details are here: