Kabrion Ervin

Name ___________________________ Section ____________

Prelab 03 Earth’s Temperature EAS 1600 Spring 2022

LAB 03: EARTH’S TEMPERATURE

Equipment List:
• Wired board with planets and lightbulb
• Laptop
• Timer
• Tinted safety glasses

Safety Precautions:
There are several things to remember in order to stay safe during this lab:
• First, be careful with the electric power cords – do not pull the cord or move the equipment.
• Keep water away from the electronics – if a spill occurs, clean it up immediately.
• There should be no metal objects close to the equipment that can get trapped underneath.
• The electric bulb can get very hot during the operation, so do not to touch it and make sure
the bulb is not near anything that has the potential to melt.
• Do not look directly at the bulb – it’s very bright. We provide protective shades.
• Turn off the bulb as soon as you are done with your measurements.

Figure 7. Side-view of experimental set-up.

Experiment Set-up and Reference Data

The set-up consists of four blackened spheres, placed at the specified distances (rx) from 150-
Watt lamp, as shown in the diagram above. Each sphere represents a planet and the lamp
represents the Sun. In the set-up, Mercury is placed at 5 cm away from the lamp, Venus at 8 cm,

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 Kabrion Ervin
Name ___________________________ Section ____________
Prelab 03 Earth’s Temperature EAS 1600 Spring 2022
Earth - at 11 cm, and Mars - at 17 cm, which is proportional to the actual distances between
planets and Sun. Each sphere has a thermistor (temperature sensor) mounted inside. The
thermistor’s output is resistance R, measured on Ohms. In this experimental set-up, we are using
the physical relationship between resistance and temperature to measure resistivity and convert
into temperature (what we will call the experimental effective temperature) using the calibration
curve or formula 𝑇(°𝐶) = 100 − 33 ∙ ln (𝑅). This will be a different formula than what is used
later in the lab to calculate theoretical effective temperature. The sensors are connected to a
multi-position switch that allows independent temperature measurements for 4 planets, one at a
time. The fifth planet, “High-albedo Earth” will be used to compare the effect of high versus
low albedo of a planet. The radius of each “planet” is 0.75 cm.

The general rule for resistivity is it increases with increasing temperatures in conductors and
decreases with increasing temperatures in insulators.

Introductory Questions:
Question 1. For this experiment, circle which of the below is true of what we are measuring and
why. [1 pt.]
a. We are directly measuring temperature with a sensor that outputs data in units of
temperature
b. We are determining temperature by measuring resistance with data output in
resistance

c. T(°C) = 100 -33 ln(R)

d. Both B and C

Question 2. (Simplified) Scientific Method Practice: Use 1-2 sentences to fill in the following
for the solar radiation experiment for this part of the lab: Hint: if you are struggling with the
hypothesis, try writing an “if…then...” statement and/or making sure you can identify a
dependent and independent variable(s). [1 pt ea. = 2 pts total]

a) Observation: Different planets have different surface temperatures.

b) Scientific Question: How does distance from the sun affect the surface temperature
of each planet

c) (Testable) Hypothesis:
If a planet is farther away from the sun than another planet then,
that planet will have a lower temperature.

Question 3. For this experiment, explain briefly why we can measure resistivity to determine
temperature (i.e. why measuring resistivity is acceptable). [1 pt.]

Resistivity can be a representation for how much energy is being transferred.

Higher Resistivity = less energy transferred
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 Name ___________________________ Section ____________
Prelab 03 Earth’s Temperature EAS 1600 Spring 2022

Experimental Procedures:
1. Connect the multimeter cable to the red and black terminals of the lab board.
2. Turn the multimeter on, and switch it into resistance measuring mode (W).
3. At room temperature and with the lamp off, record the resistance (t = 0) for each planet.
Record in Data Table 1, row 1. (Values should be ~8 – 13 kOhm)
4. Put on your tinted safety glasses. Now turn on the Sun (lamp) and wait ~15 minutes for the
system to approximately reach steady state. Do not wait more than 15 min, even if the
numbers are still changing. Work on background calculations below while waiting.
5. After 15 minutes (do not turn the bulb off yet), measure the approximate resistance for all
planet sensors. Record the time and your results in Data Table 1.
6. Turn the lamp off.
7. Using the formula T = 100 - 33 ´ ln( R ) (T is in °C and R is measured resistance in kOhm), and
the relationship between Kelvin and Celsius (K = °C+273) to calculate the experimental
effective temperatures for each of your measurements. Record the results in Data Table 2.
Data Table 1 [5 pts]

High-Albedo
Planet Mercury Venus Earth Earth Mars
Distance from
rMe~5cm rV ~8cm rE ~11cm rHAE ~11cm rMa ~17cm
“Sun”
Time, min Measured Resistance, kOhm
t = 0 (lamp off) 11.21 11.29 11.27 11.34 11.29

t = 15 1.92 4.12 5.78 8.28 8.15

Data Table 2. [10 pts]

Planet Temperature
Mercury Venus Earth High Albedo Mars
(TMe) (TV) (TE) Earth (THAE) (TMa)
T, °C T, K T, °C T, K T, °C T, K T, °C T, K T, °C T, K
t=0 20.25 293.25 20.01 293.01 20.07 293.07 19.86 292.86 20.01 293.01
t = 15 78.47 351.47 53.28 326.28 42.10 315.10 30.24 303.24 30.77 303.77

Background Calculations: Type text here

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Name ___________________________ Section ____________
Prelab 03 Earth’s Temperature EAS 1600 Spring 2022
Question 4. Using Earth’s distance from the Sun of 149.6 ∙ 10! m and solar luminosity (power)
of 3.828 ∙ 10"# W and calculate the expected solar flux at Earth. Show your work and include
units. [3 pts.]

1.361 * 10^3 W/M

Question 5. Flux is measured using an area perpendicular to the direction of incoming solar
radiation. Give the name and equation for the shape of the area intercepting the light in the case
of planets. [2 pts.] Hint: place a piece of paper vertically behind the model earth from the light –
the shadow is the light being intercepted by the model.
The shape is a circle, so the equation is pi*radius^2

Question 6. We want to look at the relationship between effective temperature and distance to
the Sun.

Use the formulas for effective planet temperature and solar flux to evaluate which of the below
demonstrate the SETUP for dependence of effective temperature on planet orbital distance from
the Sun. Circle the correct answer [2 pt]

a)

b)

c)

d)

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Name ___________________________ Section ____________
Prelab 03 Earth’s Temperature EAS 1600 Spring 2022

Question 7. Now simplify the above to show the relationship of just effective temperature and
orbital distance. Select which of the below reflects this. Note that all other components can be
replaced with constants and combined into a single term representing those, leaving the
relationship between effective temperature and planet distance. [1 pt]
a) Teff ∝ √𝑅
b) Teff ∝ R2
$
c) Teff ∝
√&
$
d) Teff ∝ &!
$
e) Teff ∝ &"

Question 8. Using the relationship you have no identified for effective temperature (Teff) and
orbital distance (R), select the correct terms to fill in the sentence below: [2 pt]

The correct relationship between effective temperature and planet distance is described by a/an

power
_____________(power, linear, exponential) function such that increasing the planet distance R

decrease
results in ______________ (an increase, a decrease, no change) in effective temperature.

Question 9. Using your answer from Q4 and the equation for effective temperature, calculate
the theoretical effective temperature for Earth. Show your work and include units. Use Earth’s
approximate albedo of 0.3. [3 pts]

254.58 K

Using the above basic relationships to plot your experimental data:

Now that the data and corresponding experimental temperature organized and displayed, we
need to compile this and upload the finalized plot. For the steps, I will be outlining in more detail
than most of you need, just in case any students are not familiar or overly comfortable with
Excel.

Steps in Excel:

• Data: On a blank EXCEL spreadsheet or to the side of your data from the previous question,
enter two columns,

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Name ___________________________ Section ____________
Prelab 03 Earth’s Temperature EAS 1600 Spring 2022
o Column 1 = Distance: Your first column should be the distance of each planet
(except high-albedo Earth) from the Sun
o Column 2 = Teff: The next column to the right should be for the equilibrium steady-
state temperature (in Kelvin) of the planet.
• Plot:
o Make a scatter-plot graph the effective temperatures (Y axis) as a function of
distance (X axis), and label your axes (Chart Tools à Design à Add Element à Add
Axes ...depending on what version of Excel or if you are using a different program,
those steps might be different).
§ In Excel, from the Ribbon Menu option of Chart Tools à Design, on the far
left there should be an option for "Quick Layout," which is an easy way to
add all the key elements into your graph (axis labels, title, and legend)
o Add a trendline
§ When you first click a datapoint, all datapoints from that dataset should
activate (if only that one point does, click elsewhere than reclick the data)
§ Next, right-click (mouse) or two-finger click (touchpad) to bring up the menu
options and towards the bottom should be an option to "Add Trendline"
§ Select the function type that matches the relationship you identified from Q4
and select the option to "Display Equation on chart"

(4 pts for data points plotted, 4 pts both labeled axes, 2 pt for trendline, 2 pt trendline equation
= 10pts)

Note: Since this experiment is a university class lab experiment, we should be able to see the
same trends as known scientific laws and make general conclusions from the data, but we should
still apply the same function type (your answer from the previous question) as those laws in
order to evaluate the accuracy of our data.

TA SIGN OFF FOR CREDIT: _____________ (10 points)

Experimental Results and Analysis

This section, "Experimental Results" contains questions and calculations based on both theoretic
(ideal / predicted) results given the experimental parameters, the actual results measured and
derived from the experiment, and finally some level of basic comparison between the two. The
majority of the below is actually based on the theoretical, or ideal and predicted results of the
experiment given the known laws and relationships for energy flux and distance. This both helps
us to practice the application of the relationships and allows us to then see how our experimental
data compares with these theoretical values. In Part 1, we will be exploring the calculations
involved in determining the total energy an object absorbs from an energy source - in the case of
a planet, that energy source is the sun. In Part 2, we will then use the results from Part 1 to
determine the effective temperature, Teff, that results from an object with that corresponding
energy. In Part 3, we will touch on the outgoing energy from the planet, Eout, in relation to total
energy balance - Eout is the other part of the equation in solving for the formula for Teff, however

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Name ___________________________ Section ____________
Prelab 03 Earth’s Temperature EAS 1600 Spring 2022
experimentally it is easier to measure the temperature of an object than the energy output, unless
that is already known (such as for the lightbulb in the experiment). In the headers for each
question, we will indicate that this section is "Results" but in parenthesis add what is being
focused on in order to help organize the content as there are a lot of equations, reference frames,
and conditions being explored.

The total power of the “Sun” in this experiment is the wattage of the light bulb (150 W) and the
spheres all have a radius of r = 0.75 cm.

Part 1: Calculating Ein

Question 10. Calculate the flux, S, in W/m2 that should be reaching the model sphere
representing “Mercury” in the experiment, using the power of the lightbulb and distance of the
model sphere. This is what we expect the model to be absorbing assuming there is no loss or gain
of energy to or from outside sources. Use the respective distance on the model, which can be
seen on the table or the picture of the set-up. Make sure to check your units (unit prefixes
matter)! [2 pts]

Note: You may also want to set this up in Excel as you will be doing calculations for the other
planets as well, just be sure to confirm the calculation!

4.36 *10^-3 W/m^2

Question 11. Report the “solar” flux reaching the models “Venus”, “Earth”, and “Mars”. Use
the respective distances (include your units!). [6 pts = 2 pt. ea.]

Venus: 1.98 * 10^-3 W/m^2

Earth: 1.01 * 10^-3 W/m^2

Mars: 3.79 * 10^-4 W/m^2

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Name ___________________________ Section ____________
Prelab 03 Earth’s Temperature EAS 1600 Spring 2022
Question 12. We want to compare how well the “solar” flux at the model “Earth” location
(calculated in Q11) compares with the theoretical solar flux impinging the actual planet Earth
(calculated in Q4)? What percentage is the experimental to real? This gives us an idea of how
well our model should match our actual Earth system. [2 pt]

Calculate the percent error for the experimental set-up to the Earth-system values, using

|𝑀𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑢𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝑉𝑎𝑙𝑢𝑒 − 𝐸𝑥𝑎𝑐𝑡 𝑉𝑎𝑙𝑢𝑒|

∙ 100%
𝐸𝑥𝑎𝑐𝑡 𝑉𝑎𝑙𝑢𝑒

Question 13. Select/circle which of the below best matches how close the experimental and
actual values are. **NOTE: True confidence intervals should only be used for statistical
deviation of a sample or population, but a similar mentality can be applied. [2 pt]

i) Extremely close (a few fractions of a percent)

ii) Reasonably close (within 2 – 5%)
iii) Somewhat or moderately close (within 25 – 30%)
iv) Not great (more than 30% off, but at least it’s the same order of magnitude)
v) Poorly (more than an order of magnitude off)

Question 14. [2 pt] Flux is measured using the perpendicular area impacted; in the case of this
experiment, incoming flux to the model earth is coming from the lightbulb and simulating
incoming solar radiation received. For a planet (and this experiment), the shape of the area
intercepting that incoming light can be approximated by a
i) Sphere
ii) Circle
iii) Square
iv) Rectangle
v) Oval

Question 15. For the spherical model planets used in your experiment, calculate the area that
intercepts the “solar” flux emitted by the light bulb (in m2). The spheres are the same, so
calculate just one value. Show all work. Hint: see Q5 [2 pts.]

7.85 x 10^-3 m^2

Question 16. Calculate the total power (amount of energy per second) this corresponds to, i.e.
that is received (Ein) by the model “Earth”, assuming its a perfect black body (albedo = 0). Use
the flux from Q11 and the intercepting area from Q15. Show all work and include units. [2 pts.]

7.93*10^-6

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 Kabrion Ervin
Name ___________________________ Section ____________
Prelab 03 Earth’s Temperature EAS 1600 Spring 2022

Question 17. Calculate the theoretical effective temperature for the model “Mercury” (use
the solar flux from Q10). Assume the model is a blackbody and so has an albedo of 0. Show your
work and include units [2 pts.]

Question 18. Repeat the calculation from Q17 and report the value here for “Venus”, “Earth”
and “Mars”. [6 pts = 2 pt ea.]

Venus:

Earth (low albedo / black sphere):

Mars:

Now, we can compare our measured/experimental values with ideal/predicted/theoretical

values.

In Excel, add your above ideal / predicted experimental Teff values (what you expect your
experimental measurements to look like if the experimental set-up perfectly models the laws) to
the same plot that has the measured values and add your updated plot in the space
below (from Excel you should be able to copy-paste). I have outlined steps as before for anyone
who is not familiar or comfortable with this process in Excel. Other programs (or tablet version)
may vary. Have your TA sign off on your plot: (3 pts for updated plot, 1 pt for trendline, 1 pt
trendline equation = 5pts]

• 2nd Data-set:

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Name ___________________________ Section ____________
Prelab 03 Earth’s Temperature EAS 1600 Spring 2022
o Add a column to your table of data that your plot references for your theoretical
data (ideal / predicted Teff )
o In the plot you already had, right-click (mouse) or two-finger click (touchpad)
anywhere in the plot area and click "Select Data" from the menu that comes up
o Click "Add" and a pop-up for the new data series (name, x-values, and y-values)
should come up, which you can fill either directly or select from the excel doc
(just click the picture to the right of the entry spot)
• Add trendline to the new dataset
4.

TA SIGN OFF FOR CREDIT: _____________ (5 points)

Question 19. How well do the two equations generated from the experimental data versus the
theoretical data compare? [2 pt.]

My experimental data, and theoretical data differed greatly.

Eout and Energy Balance:

So far, we’ve dealt with Ein and effective surface temperatures from incoming solar radiation.
Next, we need to explore Earth’s released energy, via radiating heat (Eout), and energy balance.

Question 20. Since a planet doesn’t radiate heat in only one direction, but across the entire
surface area, calculate the total surface area of the experimental / model planets (in m2). [2 pts.]

0.0798 m^2

Question 21. Calculate the energy emitted (Eout) by the blackbody “Earth” sphere in your
experiment. Use the temperature from your experiment. Check your prelab material for the
equation if you are confused… [3 pts.]

44.6

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Name ___________________________ Section ____________
Prelab 03 Earth’s Temperature EAS 1600 Spring 2022

Discussion and Conclusions

Question 22. Ideally, Ein = Eout. What is the difference between your experimental Ein and Eout
values and why are these not equal? [2 pts.]

Question 23. Exploring the variance among the predicted and measured experimental values:
• What are the sources of energy for Ein and Eout in the experimental set-up? (1 pt)
• What are potential outside / additional energy contributions for Ein and Eout? Hint: think
about in what ways the model is different than the vacuum of space and what that could
mean for extra heat coming in or being lost. (1 pt)

Question 24. What albedos are assumed for the two experimental “Earths”? Are these
reasonable? Why or why not? [2 pts.]
Low-Albedo: 0 High-Albedo: 1

These aren't exactly reasonable, because the experimental earths are neither, absorbing all
light, nor reflecting all light.

Question 25. On the real Earth, what could lower the albedo and increase the planet’s effective
temperature? [2 pt]
Less Glaciers could cause Earth to have a lower albedo, and effectively increase the
planets temperature.

Question 26. On the real Earth, what could serve as a high-albedo shield to lower the planet’s
effective temperature? [2 pt]
Clouds serve as a high albedo shield to lower the planet's temperature.

Question 27. Name two problems with or limitations of this experimental model. [2 pts]

The experimental model isn't exactly to scale, it doesn't factor in the atmosphere of
each planet, and there are outside factors that may affect to flux of the black bodies such as
lights in the room. 11
Name ___________________________ Section ____________
Prelab 03 Earth’s Temperature EAS 1600 Spring 2022

PART 2: EARTH TEMPERATURE – GREENHOUSE EFFECT

Background:
In this experiment, you will be comparing two flasks of air, one with standard air acting as a
control, and a second containing extra carbon dioxide (CO2). So long as the system is sealed and
heating conditions are equal, you should be able to observe the difference in temperature
increase due to the presence of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide (CO2).

Figure 7. Experimental Set-up after start (light off for first measurements)
Data and Conclusions:

A follow-up experiment addresses how the presence of greenhouse cases affects temperature.
We will only briefly explore this, but it's important to include a little given the role of
greenhouse gases in Earth's surface temperature. If you'd like to explore a bit more on how this
works, check out this (low tech but reasonably informative)
interactive: https://authoring.concord.org/activities/1094/single_page/0530c5a4-ac70-4a91-89fa-
c8711212d575.

This experiment uses two flasks, both sealed with a stopper and temperature probe. In one flask,
extra CO2 is injected, then both flasks are placed under a heat lamp for 15 - 20 minutes.

Table 3. Temperature change for “typical” air vs increased CO2. (2 pt)

Temperature Readings at…(°C) Total change
in T in 20
0 min 1 min 5 min 10 min 15 min 20 min min

“Typical” Air 23 27.5 41.7 50.2 53.8 56

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Name ___________________________ Section ____________
Prelab 03 Earth’s Temperature EAS 1600 Spring 2022

High-CO2 23.3 28.8 44.5 54.3 59.7 61.1

Questions and Analysis:

Question 28. How does the rate of change behave for the data (note the timesteps for each
measurements and whether all of them are equal) and what can you conclude by comparing the
two datasets? [2 pt]

Question 29. The greenhouse effect on Earth adds approximately 33° C to Earth’s average
surface temperature. Circle all that apply. [2 pt]
• Teff < Tsur
• Tsur < freezing temperature of water
• The greenhouse effect does not allow a system to stabilize
• Greenhouse gases interact with infrared light, redirecting heat from leaving Earth

The effect of clouds on planet temperature is complete: Cloud albedo can vary widely, as can
the impact of clouds depending on altitude, drop size, water/ice content, and more. Water vapor
also acts as a greenhouse gas and major heat transport, something we will explore in an
upcoming lab.

First, let’s start by thinking about just the albedo of a planet with no clouds.

Question 30. Use a weighted sum of the following values to estimate what Earth’s albedo
would be if there were no clouds. Recall that for a weighted sum, you multiply the value of
each area (in this case albedo) by the area it spans and sum all areas this way. [2 pt]

Surface Type Albedo % of Earth’s Surface

Ocean 0.06 71%
Land (average) 0.25 19%
Ice 0.8 10%

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