Concrete has a higher specific heat than soil. Use this fact to explain (in part

Question

Concrete has a higher specific heat than soil. Use this fact to explain (in part) why a city has an average temperature of 1 - 3 degree C higher than the surrounding countryside. By the end of a hot summer day, the temperature in the city reached 33 degree C, while in the countryside it reached only 26 degree C. Would you expect an evening breeze to blow from the city to the country or vice versa? Explain. It's 10 am on a hot summer day. Which would be hotter, the sand in a playground or the concrete of the sidewalk? Explain. Many American homes have an outdoor pool for the children. On a hot summer day, why do the children find relief in the pool?

Explanation / Answer

1) The soil in countryside, with the lower specific heat, will change temperature more readily, so it will heat faster. The high specific heat of concrete prevents it from heating up faster – it has a higher “thermal inertia.” thus more heat from air will be soaked up by soil thereby reducing air temperature.

2) higher temperature causes currents to rise from the surface. This creates a low pressure zone relative to a region with lower temperature. Thus wind blow from high to low pressure zone, and in this case from country side to city.

3) Rate of heat absorption in sand is greater that concrete, at 10am the surface has already received around 1 hour of sun light, thus heating up faster

4) Evaporation of water is responsible for removal of energy. Outdoor pool having a larger area, facilitates evaporation, and reduces the temperature of water

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