Explain why temperature in the outer most atmosphere can be 120 degrees F and still cold.?

Question

Explain Please! Thanks.

Answer 1

That's because there is a difference between a high temperature and high heat.  Temperature is basically a measurement of how much energy is in a given amount of material, be it solid, liquid or gas.  Heat on the other hand is the combination of both the temperature of the material and how efficiently it transfers that energy to another object.  For example, if you stick your hand in a freezer, it does not initially feel that cold.  But grab a piece of ice in that freezer, which should be the same temperature as the air, and notice that the ice feels a lot colder.   Thus while the outer atmosphere has a relatively high temperature, it does not feel that hot because it is quite thin, density-wise.

Answer 2

The temperature is warm, but there is little heat content because the density of the atmosphere is so small.  The total heat content is proportional to both the absolute temperature and the density.