A catheter adapted for use in the pericardial sac to sense temperature of an ablation site and surrounding heart tissue within one of the heart's ventricles or atria via proximity with the epicardium in the pericardial sac, includes a catheter body and a temperature sensing array adapted for placement on and contact with the epicardium. The temperature sensing array may comprise a 2-D body, with a surface adapted to contact an area on the epicardial tissue or in pericardial space. The array may also comprise at least one finger member, each having at least one temperature sensing location. The array may further comprise an elongated body having a generally circular configuration, a distal portion of which is movable to a spirally inward position.
