Talk:Death Valley
There need to be a map of the death valley
Radiating...
Re:The valley radiates extreme amounts of heat - The valley itself isn't the source of the heat. Traps heat? Absorbs and radiates perhaps. But it seems 'radiates' is misleading. Ayeroxor 04:07, Jun 27, 2005 (UTC)s
Response: The statement is accurate, at least when it is hot. Your mistake seems to be in assuming that it implies something about the valley being in some sense a primary source of the heat, which it does not. Any object whose temperature is above absolute zero radiates heat, regardless of the source of the heat, although heat is also absorbed simultaneously . -- basic physics. Your suggestion of "absorbs and radiates" is also correct. The physiological perception of warmth results when the object is at a higher temperature than the skin, so that there is a net excess of radiation over absorption, which is the common-sense definition of "radiates". Neither a building radiator (filled with hot water) nor a sun-warmed rock is a primary heat source; they are simply warm objects, but the heat they radiate is quite perceptible. -- Mrnatural, 9 Sep 05
I don't see any mention of the elevation of death valley. Can a knowledgeable person comment on that. Thanks.
Possible problems with Salts table
The formula given here for borax, Na2Mg(SO4)2·4H2O, raised my suspicion because it does not contain any boron. It seems to represent some kind of sodium magnesium sulfate. According to the Borax article the formula is Na2B4O7·10H2O, which is the formula here given for Tincalconite, while the Borax article gives the formula for the latter as Na2B4O7·5H2O, which is the formula here given for Kernite. -- Mrnatural, 8 Sep. 05