People who ski, hike, run, or do other vigorous exercise at a higher altitude than usual typically feel some effect of the elevation. It is common to feel difficulty getting enough breath. Conversely, sometimes people who travel down from a higher altitude feel like they can run faster and longer than usual. The cause, of course is that the lower density air at higher altitude provides less oxygen. At a given altitude, though, the density of air also varies with the temperature. In this post, we’ll look at the size of that effect.
