Physical meaning of temperature and evaluation of distribution laws (in the area of the Lake Sevan basin)

Abstract

Formulation of the problem. In the work, the most general definition of temperature was discussed and presented, the temporal probability distribution of air temperature was analyzed and evaluated. Temperature has no specific definition. Thus it will be difficult to study the nature of any geophysical phenomena, including the characteristics of temperature distribution, without understanding the modern scientific definition and adjustment of temperature.

The aim of the work is to give the most modern reasonable definition of temperature or what the thermometer measures, the answer to which requires a more specific scientific justification, as well as to evaluate the patterns of possible spatiotemporal distribution of air temperature in the territory of Armenia and in the area of the Lake Sevan basin.

Methods. To solve the set tasks, the authors used corresponding research and published works as a theoretical basis in the work.

In the work, the average monthly data of actual observations of the temperature of the ground surface air layer and the amount of precipitation of the «Center for Hydrometeorology and Monitoring» SNCO of the Ministry of Environment of the Republic of Armenia were used. It was found that temperature is a quantity characterizing the thermal state and radiation of the terrestrial and celestial bodies and, in general, the environment, which is strongly related to the entropy change of the system; temperature is the main thermodynamic characteristic of thermal equilibrium; the thermodynamic and microscopic concepts of temperature coincide; the temperature-heat (energy) difference becomes known in the sense that a system can have high energy but low temperature.

The authors applied the following research methods in the article: mathematical and statistical, extrapolation, analysis, analogy, correlation, cartographic.

Results. Energy depends on the geometry (dimensions) of the system, but temperature does not. A trend of increasing air temperature is observed in the RA territory, which is also a result of the entropy change of the system. It can change very quickly, depending on the environmental factors in the given area (the growth rate of greenhouse farms, the artificial filling of valleys, which are wave carriers of air flow, the relentless use of green spaces for the purpose of public buildings, and other factors) in the process of disrupting the excessively permissible norms, which are currently separate needs serious research and prevention.

The long-term variability of surface air temperature in the area of the Lake Sevan basin is analyzed. The analysis carried out made it possible to give a quantitative assessment characterizing the climate change in this region over the past 98 years. An analysis of the observational data showed that the trend of climate warming is confirmed by an increase in air temperature both in winter and over a long period of time. The change in surface air temperature occurs at a rate of 0.002 ºС/year to 0.012 ºС/year and is generally 0.008 ºС/year (or 0.08 ºС/10 years) for all analyzed stations. The results obtained confirm the presence of two periods of warming observed in 1927–1970 and 1971–2021. All the results obtained in the course of the work testify to the trend of climate mitigation in the area of the Lake Sevan basin at the end of the 20th - beginning of the 21st century.