An aerospace engineer is testing a stacked pair of identical, heat-generating electronic cubes inside a vacuum chamber. One cube has a matte black finish, and the other has a polished gold finish. Both cubes generate thermal energy at the same constant rate during operation.
The engineer tests two different configurations:
In both configurations, the base of the lower cube rests on a highly insulating support, making heat loss through the bottom of the stack negligible. The two cubes are in perfect thermal contact with each other.
It is observed that the steady-state (equilibrium) temperature of the cubes is significantly lower in Configuration 2 than in Configuration 1.
Explain, with reference to heat transfer processes, why the cubes reach a lower equilibrium temperature in Configuration 2.