Our cold cold planet...

[The Peon]

I remember reading a looong time ago that the coldest temperature anything could have was absolute zero, which is like 400 degrees below 0 C. Now if that is true, and temperatures in the sun and other parts of the galaxy can reach temperatures of 10s of thousands above 0 C, would that not mean our planet is relatively cold in the universe? Perhaps im missing something here, but it does seem odd (in a cool way) if true.

[the tree]

Well it's colder than your average raging nuclear furnace yes; but the empty spaces with bits of dust every kilometre or so, wich make up the majority of the universe, are a lot colder.

[The Peon]

Alot colder? If you consider the temperature scale I put forth, absolute zero being the coldest possible, it doesnt seem to be so much colder... Are my facts straight?

[JustStuit]

I remember reading a looong time ago that the coldest temperature anything could have was absolute zero, which is like 400 degrees below 0 C. Now if that is true, and temperatures in the sun and other parts of the galaxy can reach temperatures of 10s of thousands above 0 C, would that not mean our planet is relatively cold in the universe? Perhaps im missing something here, but it does seem odd (in a cool way) if true.

It's 253(.16) below 0 C.

Edit :: It is .15 I forgot the last digit.

[swansont]

The background radiation found in space is at about 2.7 K, so if you go by volume, that's the bulk of it. We're quite warm by that analysis. (BTW absolute 0 is -273.15 C)

[Sisyphus]

What if we go by mass?

[swansont]

What if we go by mass?

 

I think you'll find that above a certain threshold, massive things are increasingly hot.

[Sisyphus]

Right, but I meant what's the average temperature of the mass in the universe? Or is that not something that's known?

[ecoli]

Right, but I meant what's the average temperature of the mass in the universe? Or is that not something that's known?

 

it wouldn't really be accurate to just consider the mass, after all mass and energy are really just different forms of the same thing.

[silkworm]

Right, but I meant what's the average temperature of the mass in the universe? Or is that not something that's known?

 

Well, thermodynamics says that all mass in the universe is working towards being the same temperature. Whatever temperature that is would be the average for whatever mass you want.

 

And I don't think you can say the Earth is a cold cold planet. It's just right. And thankfully it has so much water and rotates well enough to moderate its temperature.

 

Here is a list of temperature descriptions of other planets in our solar system from http://www.factmonster.com/ipka/A0769141.html

 

 

Mercury alternately bakes and freezes' date=' depending on what side is lit by the Sun. The sunlit side can reach up to 950° F (510° C) and the dark side can drop as low as –346° F (–210° C)...

 

Venus: Ranges from 55°F (13°C) to 396°F (202°C) at the surface....

 

Mars: as low as –305°F (–187°C).

 

Jupiter: –234°F (–148°C) average

 

Saturn: –288°F (–178°C)

 

Uranus:uniform temperature of –353°F (–214°C)

 

Neptune: –353°F (–214°C)

 

Pluto: between –369° and –387°F (–223° and –233°C).

[/quote']

 

So, without considering moons, which I consider planets if they have atmospheres, Earth looks relatively warm in our solar system. However, it should be noted that in the universe our solar system is virtually insignificant.

[nanogrinder]

um isn't venus hotter than mercury?

[silkworm]

um venus is hotter than mercury

 

Please read it again. The sunlit side is hotter, the dark side is colder. It makes sense.

[nanogrinder]

actually the temp between the light and dark side doesn't vary that much, its the upper atmosphere thats the cold part.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venus_(planet)

[silkworm]

Okay, here.

 

Mercury alternately bakes and freezes' date=' depending on what side is lit by the Sun. The sunlit side can reach up to 950° F (510° C) and the dark side can drop as low as –346° F (–210° C)...

 

Venus: Ranges from 55°F (13°C) to 396°F (202°C) at the surface....[/quote']

 

Okay, ask yourself. Where in this is a light side and a dark side being referred to? Then ask, what the temperature differences are between the light side and the dark side? Then ask youself, where do the temperatures of the other planet fit in? It all makes sense if you read it, and comprehend it.

[Sisyphus]

it wouldn't really be accurate to just consider the mass, after all mass and energy are really just different forms of the same thing.

 

Yes, and there's a lot more of both in the center of the sun than in some spot between galaxies, wouldn't you say?

[abskebabs]

Right, but I meant what's the average temperature of the mass in the universe? Or is that not something that's known?

 

Hi, I saw a graph in our Physics department displaying the average temperature of the Universe against the progression of time since the Big Bang. Not sure how accurate it was but the average temperature is currently 4k according to it.

[nanogrinder]

Okay' date=' here.

 

 

 

Okay, ask yourself. Where in this is a light side and a dark side being referred to? Then ask, what the temperature differences are between the light side and the dark side? Then ask youself, where do the temperatures of the other planet fit in? It all makes sense if you read it, and comprehend it.[/quote']

 

 

 

i was referring to this post

 

Please read it again. The sunlit side is hotter, the dark side is colder. It makes sense.

 

 

here read the wiki article you might learn something

 

 

 

greenhouse effect that raises the surface temperature more than 400 °C (750 °F) above what it would be otherwise' date=' causing temperatures at the surface to reach extremes as great as 500 °C (930 °F) in low elevation regions near the planet's equator. This makes Venus's surface hotter than Mercury's, even though Venus is nearly twice as distant from the Sun and only receives 25% of the solar irradiance (2613.9 W/m² in the upper atmosphere, and just 1071.1 W/m² at the surface). Owing to the thermal inertia and convection of its dense atmosphere, the temperature does not vary significantly between the night and day sides of Venus despite its extremely slow rotation of less than one rotation per Venusian year...

 

The temperature at the tops of these clouds is approximately −45 °C (−50 °F). The mean surface temperature of Venus, as given by NASA, is 464 °C (864 °F). The minimal value of the temperature, listed in the table, refers to cloud tops —the surface temperature is never below 400 °C (750 °F[/quote']

[silkworm]

Jesus Christ. I give up.

[nanogrinder]

my question is what the hell are we arguing about. venus is hotter.

[Nashyboyo]

I remember reading a looong time ago that the coldest temperature anything could have was absolute zero, which is like 400 degrees below 0 C. Now if that is true, and temperatures in the sun and other parts of the galaxy can reach temperatures of 10s of thousands above 0 C, would that not mean our planet is relatively cold in the universe? Perhaps im missing something here, but it does seem odd (in a cool way) if true.

 

yeah i can see where your coming from mate. but remember what the definition of cold is. something is only cold relative to something else. comparing our planet to the sun would make this a cold cold planet indeed. i don't know the properties of all the planets in our galaxy but pluto for example is lower on the kalvin scale than our planet !

[augment]

Didn't read through all those posts gotta do something. So isn't absolute zero, 0 kelvins, which would be -273 degrees celcius.

[silkworm]

-273.15 degress centigrade is absolute 0. Yeah?

[padren]

it is true if you look at the range of temperatures that matter is found at, from absolute zero up to the point where atoms start to fly apart, then yeah, we are riiiight above the absolute freezing point percentage wise.

 

It is kinda cool, but it also makes sense. Hotter systems become more chaotic, and it would be hard to concieve of life evolving within a sun or that mutating self replicating patterns (of matter and/or energy) could maintain their integrity long enough within any high tempurature volatile system to evolve. So, it does make sense we find ourselves right where we are.

[bascule]

Right, but I meant what's the average temperature of the mass in the universe? Or is that not something that's known?

 

You'd need to have sets of data for both mass/energy distribution and temperature for the entire universe in order to calculate that.

 

So I'm going to go with "not known"

 

Hell, we have trouble calculating the mean surface temperature of the earth reliably...

[The Peon]

it is true if you look at the range of temperatures that matter is found at' date=' from absolute zero up to the point where atoms start to fly apart, then yeah, we are riiiight above the absolute freezing point percentage wise.

 

It is kinda cool, but it also makes sense. Hotter systems become more chaotic, and it would be hard to concieve of life evolving within a sun or that mutating self replicating patterns (of matter and/or energy) could maintain their integrity long enough within any high tempurature volatile system to evolve. So, it does make sense we find ourselves right where we are.[/quote']

 

I never said it didn't make sense I merely said exactly what you are getting at, that on the scale of things we are pretty cold. But as stated on the previous page, much of the universe is much colder on average, so it sort of makes the whole premise fooey..