Death Valley and science, it can't get better than this! 
"And that's why I love physics!"
- Thread starter ski3pin
- Start date
Cool! But I'm still under the belief that smart people should give us mere mortals chance....
Thanks, Ski, that was fun. But then, I actually did enjoy my physics courses.
Smokecreek1
Smokecreek1
What???? Boy that was interesting but I still do feel stupid looking at that and thinking about all those smart people out there ( like Steve I didn't do that well in physics)!
Smoke
( like Steve I didn't do that well in physics)!Smoke
The series that this came from, "Wonders of the Solar System", was really great -- recommended, as was another series by the same folks, same narrator, "Wonders of the Universe". In the "..Universe" series they get into pretty cool stuff like, "What determines the direction of time?" . The physicist-narrator -- Dr. Brian Cox -- does a great job and really conveys an enthusiasm for the "wonder" of the natural world . I watched it several years ago...not sure if you can find it online for streaming, but there are DVDs to order.
The demonstration is really just a conceptual example -- the method described won't give accurate results to estimate energy flux from the Sun to the Earth in general. For one thing, the water in the bucket needs to be stirred while the measurement is going on -- thermometer in stagnant water won't do it. And the color/reflectivity of the bucket (shiny silver vs white or black) affects the rate of heat absorption, too.
If I was limited to equipment commonly-available while camping and I wanted to know how much energy from the sun was currently striking my spot on the Earth...I'd use a black solar-shower bag containing a small measured amount of water at equilibrium with the ambient air temperature. Measure the water temperature. Lay the bag flat in the sun (NOT on hot sand). Squish/jostle the bag a bit while it's absorbing the solar energy to try to equilibrate the water with the bag surface. After a few minutes, stick a thermometer in the bag port and measure the water temperature again. (I'd probably measure the temperature at regular intervals a few times)
Specific heat capacity of water is, by definition, 1 BTU/lb/°F so use that conveniently-simple number along with the water-weight, bag-area, temperature change and time interval to estimate the solar energy flux.
. The physicist-narrator -- Dr. Brian Cox -- does a great job and really conveys an enthusiasm for the "wonder" of the natural world . I watched it several years ago...not sure if you can find it online for streaming, but there are DVDs to order.The demonstration is really just a conceptual example -- the method described won't give accurate results to estimate energy flux from the Sun to the Earth in general. For one thing, the water in the bucket needs to be stirred while the measurement is going on -- thermometer in stagnant water won't do it. And the color/reflectivity of the bucket (shiny silver vs white or black) affects the rate of heat absorption, too.
If I was limited to equipment commonly-available while camping and I wanted to know how much energy from the sun was currently striking my spot on the Earth...I'd use a black solar-shower bag containing a small measured amount of water at equilibrium with the ambient air temperature. Measure the water temperature. Lay the bag flat in the sun (NOT on hot sand). Squish/jostle the bag a bit while it's absorbing the solar energy to try to equilibrate the water with the bag surface. After a few minutes, stick a thermometer in the bag port and measure the water temperature again. (I'd probably measure the temperature at regular intervals a few times)
Specific heat capacity of water is, by definition, 1 BTU/lb/°F so use that conveniently-simple number along with the water-weight, bag-area, temperature change and time interval to estimate the solar energy flux.
Stalking Light
Feral Grandpa
Shows how dated I am, I used to read the Mr. Tompkins books when I was in grad school, but they were pretty old even in the 60's.
hoyden
Lady Bug
Foy
Resident Geologist
A very nice piece, and thanks for sharing. As an undergraduate with suspect math skills, I was always amazed at the physics faculty and how they all seemed to know pretty much how everything on Earth worked. I wish I'd been a more focused student of physics and chemistry.
The piece gives a glimpse at the wonderful symmetry of the metric system, too.
Foy
The piece gives a glimpse at the wonderful symmetry of the metric system, too.
Foy
OP
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Foy said:
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Yep, that be it.ski3pin said:
And here's Wonders of the Universe, by the same folks a season later. Both are short series.
Maybe one reason I like both of these series is that they're presented by a professional physicist who actually understands what he's saying. That's not always necessary or even important. But it's a contrast with, say, "How the Universe Works" narrated by "Deadliest Catch", "Dirty Jobs" Mike Rowe, who just brings a voice and "regular guy" persona to those programs.
(I liked "How the Universe Works", too, though, and I learned stuff that I didn't know before.)
