Abstract: Due to spontaneous combustion of coal stockpile on surface ground had been a serious problem with the stock quantity and stock time increased, a tem perature measuring technology applied to prevent and control the spontaneous combustion of coal stockpile became a necessary means. The paper firstly stated the av ailable direct and indirect coal stockpile temperature measuring methods and principle. Then the paper introduced the common simple temperature measuring device a nd the composite type temperature measuring equipment of coal stockpile, and analyzed the structural principle, advantages and disadvantages, as well as the applicati on scope. The results showed that a wireless temperature measuring and optical fiber temperature measuring technology would be the research focuses of present tem perature measuring for coal stockpile, the precision, complex and automation of the temperature measuring system would be the development tendency, the developme nt of coal stockpile temperature measuring instrument based on new mechanism would be a new development orientation.