ASHWAUBENON — You've heard the ages-old saying that it's hot enough to fry an egg outside. But is it actually true? We went out to Smith Park in Ashwaubenon to see how quickly we could cook or melt certain items.
Our first test was the classic egg experiment. Before cracking the egg, NBC 26's Chris Lemmo used an infrared thermometer to get a temperature reading of the asphalt. With a reading of around 120°F, the ground was actually cooler than the next two surfaces used.
Next, we tested out a seven-pound bag of ice to see how quickly we could melt it. The rubber surface of the playground next to the slides was a toasty 155°F.
Our final test was baking a cookie on the car's dashboard. With a temperature reading of around 170°F, this was our most successful location.
The results showed that temperatures of around 150°F or higher really started to accelerate our melting rate.
After an hour and a half, our bag of ice melted and our cookie was well underway in the car, but our egg didn't change much at all.
While it's not recommended to use this cooking method, our experiment found a dark car interior is an optimal surface on a sweltering summer day.
