an ice cube, a glass of cold water, and a swimming pool are each exposed to the same amount of sunlight on a hot day. after five minutes, the ice cube is melted and the cold drink is two degrees warmer, but the temperature of the swimming pool remains unchanged. what is the best explanation for these observations?
It has to do with the amount of water in the pool. It is so much larger, it takes longer to heat up.
The best explanation for these observations is that the ice cube melts and the cold drink warms up because they have a relatively small volume compared to the swimming pool.
To understand why this happens, we need to consider the concept of heat and heat capacity. Heat is energy transferred from one object to another due to a temperature difference. Heat capacity is a measure of how much heat energy an object can absorb before its temperature increases.
The ice cube and the cold drink have significantly smaller volumes compared to the swimming pool. So, when they are exposed to the same amount of sunlight, they receive the same amount of heat energy per unit area. However, due to their small size, they quickly absorb this heat energy and their temperatures increase.
The ice cube, in particular, undergoes a phase change from a solid to a liquid as it melts, absorbing a large amount of heat energy in the process. This causes it to melt completely in just five minutes.
The cold drink, however, has a larger heat capacity compared to the ice cube, so it takes a longer time to warm up. After five minutes, it has absorbed enough heat energy to increase its temperature by two degrees.
On the other hand, the swimming pool has an enormous volume, which gives it a high heat capacity. As a result, it requires a much larger amount of heat energy to produce a noticeable change in temperature. Even though it is exposed to the same amount of sunlight as the ice cube and the cold drink, the pool's large volume allows it to absorb and distribute heat energy without significantly changing its overall temperature in just five minutes.
Therefore, the difference in volume and heat capacity is the best explanation for why the ice cube melts, the cold drink warms up slightly, and the swimming pool remains unchanged when exposed to the same amount of sunlight on a hot day.