Editing Algor mortis (section)

{{Short description|Change in body temperature post mortem}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2022}}
{{Signs of death}}
[[File:Postmortem interval changes (stages of death).png|thumb|500px|Timeline of postmortem changes, with algor mortis represented by red temperature line]]
'''Algor mortis''' ({{ety|la|algor|coldness||mortis|of death}}), the third [[stage of death]], is the change in [[Human body temperature|body temperature]] post mortem, until the ambient temperature is matched. This is generally a steady decline, although if the ambient temperature is above the body temperature (such as in a hot [[desert]]), the change in temperature will be positive, as the (relatively) cooler body equalizes with the warmer environment. External factors can have a significant influence.

The term was first used by [[Bennet Dowler]] in 1849.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Riess|first=Karlem|title=The Rebel Physiologist|url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/24620836|journal=Journal of the History of Medicine and Allied Sciences|jstor=24620836}}</ref> The first published measurements of the intervals of temperature after death were done by [[John Davy (chemist)|John Davy]] in 1839.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/b21517964_0001|page=[https://archive.org/details/b21517964_0001/page/228 228]|title=Researches: Physiological and Anatomical|last=Davy|first=John|date=1839|publisher=Smith, Elder and Company|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title=Estimation of the Time Since Death, Third Edition|last=Madea|first=Burkhard|publisher=CRC Press|year=2015}}</ref>