As we all know after death body temperature drops. Whereas the average body temperature is about 37 degrees Celsius (98.6 degrees Fahrenheit), after death this temperature drops at a fairly steady rate.

After death the body temperature of a person will begin to drop. At room temperature a dead body will lose heat at a rate of about 1.5 degrees Celsius in the first hour after death, and between 1.5 and 1 degrees for every hour after that. This useful method can to used to pinpoint the time of death. However there are factors that affect this rate, and these are not just situation factors. If the victim died due to asphyxiation or cerebral haemorrhage, the initial body temperature may be higher than usual. Aslo, a naked body will lose heat faster than a clothed body. Usually, larger people lose heat slower than smaller people.

The situation of the body and the environment also has an affect. If the body has been in water the body temperature will cool down much quicker, whereas if the body is in the middle of the desert it would lose heat much slower and may have a higher temperature to start with. Forensic scientists have to take all of these factors into account.

The general formula used for working out the time of death is: normal body temperature divided by 1.5 = number of hours since death.