Wondering about wild grapes

Sunday, January 13, 2013

Wondering about cold temperatures.

Yes, it is a cold, rainy morning this morning.  Quite a difference a day makes.  Yesterday it was warm and dry and got up in the 70's.  I guess the warmest part of today happened just after midnight last night.  We might think that it feels really cold sometimes and sometimes I hear a lot of complaints about the cold spells.  Well, let me tell you, you ain't felt real cold.

I am going to list some of the coldest places in the universe, that we know of and have actually measured.  Let me start with Triton, the largest moon of the planet Neptune.  Voyager 2 recorded -391 back in 1989.  Let's go out a little further to Pluto where it gets to -393 degrees.

Not cold enough for you yet?  In 2011 the temperature on Eris (which is now classified as a minor planet) got down to a -393 degrees Fahrenheit.  But even closer to home, the craters near our moon's pole was measured at a -415 F.  Now that is getting rather chilly, isn't it?  But wait!!  There is a place that is 30 degrees cooler than that.  (Cooler?  Not quite the right adjective)  Have you guessed where it is?  No, it isn't a witch's . . . just colder.  It is intersteller space where it has been measured at a very bone chilling -455 degrees Fahrenheit.  Since absolute zero is -459.67 degrees, I would say that intersteller space is almost as cold as it can get.  Oh yes, some may ask why temperature can't go below absolute zero.  Well, it is where a substance has no thermal energy and where particles stop moving.

Now, I bet this little cold spell that moved in doesn't feel all that bad, does it?  You all keep warm and happy, you hear?

9 comments:

  1. Yes it does. It makes the fish hibernate and bicycle tires not like to roll. Hiking shoes reject going outside on the cold dirt. Even Hitchitch calms down in this miserabel cold weather.

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  2. I have no type of energy and my particles stop moving at about 20 degress F. I'd be a stalagmite on Eris.






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  3. You think that is cold, you should have to experience my ex's feet in your back about two in the morning.

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  4. I don't know about any where else, but I certainly understand the cold Bob is talking about! As they say, "been there and done that!"

    I'm all for staying inside today!

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  5. Barney, that is for sure, especially about the fish. The warmer they are the more they eat.

    Jimkabob, I slow down a lot at both ends of the thermoter.

    Bob from A, now that does sound cold.

    HJ, been married to the same gal going on 50 years this coming August. Believe it or not, we went to the out door flea market early this morning.

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  6. Even if I complain about the cold, I would rather have it than the really hot weather in summer.

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  7. Gypsy, yes, it is easier to keep warm than to keep cool. You can out on more clothes but you can only take off what you have on.

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  8. We are having a heat wave here in mid-January in central Pennsylvania - it got up to almost 50 degrees today. Still no sun though.

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  9. Jill, the winter darkness is one thing I don't miss since I moved from Pennsylvania, where I was born, raised, and lived half my life. I loved he winters that had a lot of snow. I remember a 42" snow around Thanksgiving in 1950, I be live. Had fun in that one.

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