adiabatic cooling

Adiabatic cooling is like when you blow on hot food. As you blow air onto the food, some of the heat energy from the food is transferred to the air, cooling the food down. In nature, the same thing happens when air is pushed up high into the atmosphere. When the air moves to the higher altitude, some of its energy is transferred to the atmosphere, making the air colder. This process is called adiabatic cooling.