Distributed real-time embedded systems have stringent requirements for key performance properties, such as endto-end timeliness and reliability, in order to operate properly. In recent years, with the continuously decreasing feature size and increasing demand for computation capabilities, today’s real-time embedded systems face an increasing probability of overheating and even thermal failures. As a result, their temperature must be explicitly controlled for improved reliability. While a variety of control algorithms have been proposed for either real-time guarantees or thermal management in an isolated manner, this paper proposes a coordinated control solution that can provide simultaneous thermal and timeliness guarantees for distributed real-time embedded systems running in unpredictable environments. Our control solution features a novel coordination design, which allows the thermal and timeliness control loops to run on their respective desired small timescales for prompt contr...