2006-07-01 04:04:26 · 15 answers · asked by Candy Peach 2 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Other - Science
oh so many reasons. Boyle's law (or was it the other guy?) is the main one - lower air pressure higher up but the same amount of energy in the air means lower actual temperature. If you put some air into a box at sea level, then walked up the mountain with it tucked under your arm, taking care that it didn't pick up or lose any heat on the way up, but making sure it was always at the same pressure as the air around you as you walked up, it would get colder.
Pump up a bicycle tyre and you'll see the reverse effect - the business end of the pump gets hot because you're raising the pressure of the air.
Why does air pressure get lower as you go up? Purely because air pressure is caused by all that other air on top of the air you've got. Head up a mountain and there's less above you.
Oh yeah - just to mention, mountains are further away from the sun at night.
2006-07-01 04:15:16 · answer #1 · answered by wild_eep 6 · 4⤊ 0⤋
They are not closer to the sun during the night because that part of the earth is pointing away from the sun, so that the top of a mountain would actually be further away.
If you were stood on the equator at midday on the top of a mountain, you could argue that you were nearer the sun than you be if you were stood at the base of the mountain. But the sun is about ninety three million miles away so the effect on temperature of a few hundred, or even a few thousand feet would be almost unmeasureable. What is much more significant, however, is that as you go higher the heat absorbed by the earth is rapidly irradiated in the rarified air. ie there is nothing to conduct/emit heat.
2006-07-01 11:57:41 · answer #2 · answered by Veritas 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
First of all, the Earth averages a distance of approximately 150 million kilometers from the Sun. Even if a mountain stretched many kilometers up from the surface of the Earth, in the overall sceme of things, that mountain is still millions of kilometers away from the Sun (no big difference in temperature from the surface). However, as you rise in elevation, the air on our planet cools. That allows us to have snow-covered mountains located very close to the equator, as well as those located nearer to polar regions.
2006-07-01 05:08:24 · answer #3 · answered by Jack H 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
it is the heat of the sun reflected by the earth that accounts for the temp in a place.the medium is earth.so as you go higher you are putting distance between you and the earth's surface t.that is why the mountain tops are cooler and if you go say 5000 metre above the surface you have nothing but snow
2006-07-01 05:28:42 · answer #4 · answered by raj 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Because with every thousand feet you rise in elevation,on average,the air drops three degrees in temperature,regardless of your position on the planet...tom science
2006-07-01 04:12:17 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
it could depend on what time of the year it is, because the Earth circles the sun every year, right? so if it was the oppiste side of the sun, it will be colder
2006-07-01 04:24:21 · answer #6 · answered by boosh-wolf 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
May as well ask why is it cold in space. The answer to both is that there isn't sufficient molecules to hold heat energy, so it feels cold.
2006-07-01 04:34:02 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
At a higher altitude the air is colder.
2006-07-01 04:09:39 · answer #8 · answered by Caz 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
temperature drops with elevation. the location of the mountains also contribute.
2006-07-01 04:08:06 · answer #9 · answered by Halo 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
because it is colder the higher in the atmosphere you get. Maybe it has something to do with thinner air at higher altitudes?
2006-07-01 04:32:14 · answer #10 · answered by j_piccioni 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋