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Sensible heat is heat exchanged by a body or thermodynamic system in which the exchange of heat changes the temperature of the body or system, and some macroscopic variables of the body or system, but leaves unchanged certain other macroscopic variables of the body or system, such as volume or pressure.Partington, J.R. (1949). An Advanced Treatise on Physical Chemistry, Volume 1, Fundamental Principles. The Properties of Gases, Longmans, Green, and Co., London, pages 155-157.Prigogine, I., Defay, R. (1950/1954). Chemical Thermodynamics, Longmans, Green & Co, London, pages 22-23.Adkins, C.J. (1975). Equilibrium Thermodynamics, second edition, McGraw-Hill, London, , Section 3.6, pages 43-46.Landsberg, P.T. (1978). Thermodynamics and Statistical Mechanics, Oxford University Press, Oxford, , page 11.
The sensible heat of a thermodynamic process may be calculated as the product of the body's mass ( m) with its specific heat capacity ( c) and the change in temperature ():
In the writings of the early scientists who provided the foundations of thermodynamics, sensible heat had a clear meaning in calorimetry. James Prescott Joule characterized it in 1847 as an energy that was indicated by the thermometer., Lecture on Matter, Living Force, and Heat. May 5 and 12, 1847
Both sensible and latent heats are observed in many processes while transporting energy in nature. Latent heat is associated with changes of state, measured at constant temperature, especially the phase transition of atmospheric water vapor, mostly vaporization and condensation, whereas sensible heat directly affects the temperature of the atmosphere.
In meteorology, the term 'sensible heat flux' means the conductive heat flux from the Earth's surface to the atmosphere.Stull, R.B. (2000). Meteorology for Scientists and Engineers, second edition, Brooks/Cole, Belmont CA, , page 57. It is an important component of Earth's surface energy budget. Sensible heat flux is commonly measured with the eddy covariance method.
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