What happens to temperature as elevation increases?

As elevation increases, temperature typically decreases due to the decrease in atmospheric pressure and the thinner air found at higher altitudes. This phenomenon is largely attributed to the adiabatic lapse rate, which describes how the temperature of an air mass changes as it rises. As air rises, it expands due to lower pressure, and this expansion results in cooling.

At sea level, the air is denser and can hold more heat, which is why temperatures are generally warmer at lower elevations. Conversely, as you ascend into higher elevations—such as climbing a mountain—temperatures tend to drop, leading to the characteristic cooler conditions found in mountainous regions. This cooling effect is consistent up to a certain altitude, usually around the tropopause, where temperatures may stabilize or even increase again in the stratosphere.