Article
Article
- Physics
- Thermodynamics and heat
- Temperature
Temperature
Article By:
Hultsch, Roland A. Department of Physics, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri.
Last reviewed:June 2019
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.683500
Show previous versions
- Temperature, published 2014:Download PDF Get Adobe Acrobat Reader
- History
- Empirical scales
- Absolute temperature scale
- Kinetic temperature
- Negative absolute temperatures
- Extreme temperatures
- Related Primary Literature
- Additional Reading
A quantitative measure of hotness or coldness expressed in arbitrary numerical scales. Temperature as a concept involves the flow of heat from one object or region of space to another. In everyday life, temperature is familiarly encountered in relation to weather (Fig. 1), indoor climate control, food preparation and storage, as well as bodily health. In physics, thermodynamic temperature is an absolute measure of the average energy of motion of the atoms and molecules in an object, circumscribed region, or theoretical space. See also: Atom; Food preservation; Heat transfer; Homeostasis; Molecule; Physics; Refrigeration; Thermodynamic principles; Weather
The content above is only an excerpt.
for your institution. Subscribe
To learn more about subscribing to AccessScience, or to request a no-risk trial of this award-winning scientific reference for your institution, fill in your information and a member of our Sales Team will contact you as soon as possible.
to your librarian. Recommend
Let your librarian know about the award-winning gateway to the most trustworthy and accurate scientific information.
About AccessScience
AccessScience provides the most accurate and trustworthy scientific information available.
Recognized as an award-winning gateway to scientific knowledge, AccessScience is an amazing online resource that contains high-quality reference material written specifically for students. Contributors include more than 10,000 highly qualified scientists and 46 Nobel Prize winners.
MORE THAN 8700 articles covering all major scientific disciplines and encompassing the McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science & Technology and McGraw-Hill Yearbook of Science & Technology
115,000-PLUS definitions from the McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms
3000 biographies of notable scientific figures
MORE THAN 19,000 downloadable images and animations illustrating key topics
ENGAGING VIDEOS highlighting the life and work of award-winning scientists
SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER STUDY and additional readings to guide students to deeper understanding and research
LINKS TO CITABLE LITERATURE help students expand their knowledge using primary sources of information