|
My sister asked me this question and I keep thinking that water would conduct heat much faster than sand. Hence the energy transfer of heat across the lake does not allow it to heat up soon. Sand on the other hand is probably a bad conductor of heat and hence more heat energy is held up by each grain of sand. But then with water there is also convection which perhaps plays a role. I would like to see what the experts say. My thinking is quite informal. |
|||||
|
|
was taught that it has more to do with specific heat than with heat conduction. 1 gr of water requires 1 cal of heat to raise its temperature by 1 °C. By comparison, sand only takes about 0.2 cal to get the same effect. You can find some values of common substances here. |
|||
|
|
Another factor: Sun radiation penetrates much deeper in water than in sand, so it warms up a greater mass of water to a lesser temperature. |
|||
|
|
