Why not use nuclear power for spaceflight?
118. “Doesn’t heat rise?” I was helping my wife in her 3rd grade class yesterday and one of the students came up with an interesting question. We were talking about how it gets cooler as you increase your altitude (specifically in the mountains). I was guessing that the temperature drops about 3 degrees for every 1000 ft that you climb. I was really caught off guard with a question from the “peanut gallery.” It was – “Doesn’t heat rise?” I said that that is correct, and conversely cold would tend to remain near the ground. He further questioned – “If heat rises then why wouldn’t it get hotter as you increase your altitude? I had no explanation. Can you help? Reply The answer below is tailored (I hope!) to the 3rd grade level, not an easy task. —————————– It is true–the atmosphere is hot at its bottom and cool higher up (at least for the first 10 miles or so). It is true even though, as we know, hot air tends to rise! It all happens because THE BOTTOM OF THE ATMOSPHE
