The Temperatures of EarthInstruments That Measure TemperatureTemperature ScalesTemperature Properties
"Dress warm, kids. The temperature is only going to reach 20°F today." Your parents have probably said something like this to you many times. But what do they mean by the word temperature (tem-per-ah-chur)? Well, temperature is the measure of hot and cold. The hotter something is, the higher the temperature. The colder something is, the lower the temperature.
Understanding temperature is very important in science. The links below will tell you more.
The Temperatures of EarthWhat is a thermometer?How do we measure temperature?"Dress warm, kids. The temperature is only going to reach 20°F today." Your parents have probably said something like this to you many times. But what do they mean by the word temperature? Well, most people describe temperature as the measure of heat. If something has a lot of heat, then it is considered hot and has a high temperature. If something has very little heat, then it is considered cold and has a low temperature.
So, what is heat? Heat is the measure of the average speed of atoms and molecules in an object. The faster the atoms and molecules move in an object, the more heat it has. The more heat the object has, the higher its temperature.
Understanding temperature is very important in science. Meteorologists, physicists, geologists, and astronomers are just a few of the scientists that use temperature to figure out things about our planet and the universe. The links below will tell you more about temperature.
The Temperatures of EarthWhat is a thermometer?How do we measure temperature?What are some of the properties of temperature?Temperature has different meanings for different groups of people. Most describe it as the measure of the hotness or coldness of an object. Chemists and engineers describe it as a measure of the average speed of atoms and molecules in an object (heat). Astronomers and atmospheric scientists describe temperature as a function of several properties, including: color, brightness, and ionization.
So, who's correct? They all are! Temperature is a combination of all
these descriptions, which is why it is so important to science. In fact,
entire college courses are devoted specifically to the subject of temperature!
This section will attempt cover some of the aspects of temperature through
the links below.
The Temperatures of Earth
Instruments That Measure Temperature
Temperature Scales
Temperature Properties
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