Wouldn’t it seem logical that as you get closer to the sun, the temperature would increase?
We all have experienced this when we stand closer to a fire or put our hands nearer a stove or a lit match.
So why is it that mountain peaks are so much colder than the air at sea level? When the pilot comes on the intercom and announces that you are flying at 38,000 feet and the temperature outside is minus 60 degrees, what’s the dealio?
Well, when you have a heat source that is 93,000,000 miles away, getting closer to it by 7 miles is like taking one step closer to a campfire in Belgium when you are standing on the beach in California. It is not significantly closer in any meaningful way.
The reason it’s colder as you go higher has to do with the density of molecules. Sunlight energizes atoms and when this happens, they crash into one another, releasing heat. When the air is dense the molecules are close together and more of them are banging into each other. But at higher altitudes, the air is thinner and therefore, fewer collisions and less heat.
This all reminds me of the two Polish scientists who wanted their country to be the first to put a man on the sun. The one scientist argued that since the air gets colder in space they could accomplish this feat, given a really fast spaceship and enough time.
The other scientist said, “No, you idiot. Once you get close enough to the sun, the astronauts will burn up!”
To which the other replied, “You’re the idiot. We’ll make sure that they go at night!”
(Brian, don’t share this with your basketball teammates.)
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