According to American scientists, bomb-sniffing dogs perform worse under extreme heat and humidity conditions, taking longer to identify explosives and with reduced sensitivity.
The dogs were exposed to the odors of four different explosives: double-base smokeless powder, C-4, ammonium nitrate, and trinitrotoluene (TNT), at varying levels of heat and humidity.
Under normal conditions, the dogs detected all the explosives, but under extreme heat and humidity, their abilities were impaired.
Detection of smokeless powder was reduced in all environmental conditions other than normal conditions and was less detectable under high temperature and humidity conditions. Detection of ammonium nitrate was weaker when the temperature was elevated and humidity was either high or low.
C-4 was less detectable at low temperatures with high humidity. Dogs had difficulty detecting TNT in all conditions, including normal ones, so it was not clear whether heat and humidity were having a noticeable effect, say the experts.
The dogs whose abilities were most affected were those whose bodies warmed more when the temperature was high, the experts say, and these dogs were the slowest to start the task when the odor samples were presented.
