ATM OCN (Meteorology) 100

ATMOSPHERIC TEMPERATURE:
A FUNDAMENTAL WEATHER ELEMENT

Summer 2000

Lecture #3 Scheduled for:

14 JUN 2000 (W)

Recommended Readings from Moran and Morgan (1997):

pages 69-73 (left column); 24-25 (left column); 78-83; 102-105.

Today's Lecture Objectives:

• To distinguish between temperature and heat.
• To list and describe the four commonly used thermometers.
• To discuss the factors that are necessary to obtain an accurate air temperature reading.
• To compare and contrast the Celsius, Fahrenheit and Kelvin temperature scales and perform conversions between each scale, given a selected temperature reading.
• To list typical values and the observed extreme ranges of surface air temperature.
• To compute the daily mean, daily range, monthly mean, annual mean and annual range of temperature at a locale from a provided data set.
• To calculate heating- and cooling- degree day units from appropriate data and relate these calculations to expected fuel consumption.
• To recognize the influence of the major controls of temperature upon the world temperature distribution.
• To label the salient features of a typical vertical temperature profile of the earth's atmosphere ranging from the earth's surface to a height of several hundred kilometers, using the traditional temperature based nomenclature.
• To describe the general characteristics of the layers in the earth's atmosphere based upon the vertical variation in air temperature.
• To identify the causes responsible for this temperature profile.

Outline:

A. BACKGROUND

• Definitions Temperature, Heat, Internal Energy
• Human Significance of Temperature

B. THERMOMETRY

• The Science of Thermometry
• Types of Thermometers
• Liquid-in-glass thermometers
• Maximum recording thermometers
• Minimum recording thermometers
• Deformation thermometers
• Bimetallic thermometers
• Electrical thermometers
• Thermistors
• Radiation thermometers (radiometers)
• Measurement Requirements
• Thermometer Exposure
• Temperature Scales
• Historical Background
• The Three Temperature Scales: Fahrenheit, Celsius and Kelvin
• Temperature Scale Conversions

C. THE CLIMATOLOGY OF NEAR-SURFACE AIR TEMPERATURE

• Temporal Variation in Air  Temperature
• Diurnal cycle
• Annual cycle
• Spatial Variation in Observed Atmospheric Temperature
• North-south
• Continent-ocean
• Average Daily Temperatures and Degree-Day Units

D. VARIATION OF OBSERVED AIR TEMPERATURE WITH HEIGHT

• Temperature lapse rates
• Layer nomenclature
• isothermal, inversion, lapse
• The Standard Reference Atmosphere
• The Temperature Spheres
• The boundaries or "pauses"
• Reasons for the observed vertical temperature structure
• Implications of the vertical temperature structure

Links to Other References:

• A set of background documents for meteorological instruments, to include thermometers, at several levels of difficulty appear as Digital Library in the EarthLab Project , at a level intended for the general public. See other demonstrations entitled Weather Tools and Displays .
• Educational resource unit (K-12) on air temperature from Nebraska Earth Science Education Network (NESEN):
• Elementary level Am I Hot or Am I Cold
• Intermediate Level Heating The Atmosphere
                               Temperature Graphs
• Secondary level Hot, Hotter, Hottest
                           The Earth's Atmosphere and Temperature
• All-time temperature extremes by state (from NCDC).

Last revision 15 June 2000 (0450 UTC)

URL: aos100/lectures/0003tmp.html

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