eli5: Why is it temperatures can go up to the trillions but only down to -273?

Question

eli5: Why is it temperatures can go up to the trillions but only down to -273?

In: Physics

Answer 1

For the same reason that the number of pies you eat in your life can never go below 0.

Temperature measures something. Every degree you go down, a little more of that something is taken away. At some point, there’s no more to take away.

That ‘something’ is a type of energy.

Why -273? Because a long time ago, somebody said “Tom ate 273 pies in his life. So, let’s measure how many pies you eat relative to Tom. If you eat more pies than Tom, that’s a positive number. If you eat fewer, it’s a negative number.”