Thermal equilibrium occurs when a system's macroscopic thermal observables have ceased to change with time. For example, an ideal gas whose distribution function has stabilised to a specific Maxwell–Boltzmann distribution would be in thermal equilibrium. This outcome allows a single temperature and pressure to be attributed to the whole system. For an isolated body, it is quite possible for mechanical equilibrium to be reached before thermal equilibrium is reached, but eventually, all aspects of equilibrium, including thermal equilibrium, are necessary for thermodynamic equilibrium.