• Question: if heat rises why is it colder on the top of a mountain?

    Asked by ALFIE! to David, Eva, Kate, Nicholas, Rachel on 10 Nov 2015.
    • Photo: Rachel McMullan

      Rachel McMullan answered on 10 Nov 2015:

      Hi Alfie
      Intersting question.
      In the earth’s atmosphere the pressure decreases as you go up and the atmosphere gets thinner. As air goes up it moves from higher to lower pressure and expands. As it expands it cools.
      Hope that answers your question

    • Photo: Nicholas Pearce

      Nicholas Pearce answered on 11 Nov 2015:

      Hey,

      At the top of a mountain the air is a lot thinner – the most air is closer to the ground. So as heat rises, it spreads out and cools down. At mountaintops it’s very cold because the air is so thin.
      The sun also heats the earth on the ground, not the air. This means there is a lot more heat at ground level, even if it does start to rise up.

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