Terminal Temperature

[mnunes810]

I wonder if there are terminal temperatures? Like terminal velocity, atmosphere must be taken into account if we are talking about temperatures on earth, but how about in space? Imagine an area out of reach of any heat creating body, such as a star (even if there isn't actually such an area). What temperature does the mercury stop falling? Or does it?

[insane_alien]

a 'terminal temperature' will only be reached when the rate of heat going out of the object in question equals the rate of heat entering the object.

 

this is termed thermal equilibrium. its nothing shocking.

[Sisyphus]

I wonder if there are terminal temperatures? Like terminal velocity, atmosphere must be taken into account if we are talking about temperatures on earth, but how about in space? Imagine an area out of reach of any heat creating body, such as a star (even if there isn't actually such an area). What temperature does the mercury stop falling? Or does it?

 

It's true that there isn't actually such an area. And even if there were, the entire universe is permeated with the cosmic microwave background radiation (CMBR). You could physically block yourself off from it, but whatever you're using to block it would itself be emitting radiation. At a certain point, the energy you give off will come into equilibrium with the energy you're absorbing. With the CMBR, this will happen for objects at about 2.725K.

 

So yes, it does happen, and it's very cold, but not zero.

[Edtharan]

Terminal Velocity occurs because of two opposing forces: Gravity and Friction (air resistance). Gravity makes you fall faster, and the faster you move through the air the greater the friction it causes. When the two forces equal one another, you get terminal velocity.

 

So to get a terminal temperature, you need to have these two opposing forces. So like insane_alien said:

 

a 'terminal temperature' will only be reached when the rate of heat going out of the object in question equals the rate of heat entering the object

 

Here you have two opposing "forces" (well only one is really a force), the heating and the cooling (cooling is not actually a "thing" but it is the absence of heating). When they equal each other, you get thermal equilibrium (and this could also be called terminal temperature).

 

If you are interested in this further, try looking for

- Thermal Equilibrium

- Black body radiation

- Thermodynamics