The layers of the Earths Atmosphere

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The layers of the Earths Atmosphere

• 6.6 c Student Notes

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The atmosphere is made up of layers troposphere
stratosphere mesosphere thermosphere exospher
ethat have distinct characteristics
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Characteristics of the troposphere

• Contains all the weather
• Densest layer contains almost 90 of the
  atmospheres total mass
• Almost all the Earths CO2, water vapor, clouds,
  air pollution, weather, and life-forms (US) are
  found here.

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Characteristics of the stratosphere

• Gases are layered (they do not mix much)
• Temperature starts off extremely cold (-60
  degrees C) and then rises
• Contains the Ozone layer

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Ozone Layer

• The ozone layer forms a thin shield high up in
  the sky.
• It protects life on Earth from the sun's
  ultraviolet (UV) radiation
• Get sick easier, skin cancer and eye damage

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Characteristics of the mesosphere

• Known as the middle layer
• Coldest layer
• Temperatures decrease as we increase altitude
  (can be as low as -93 degrees C)

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Characteristics of the thermosphere

• The uppermost (highest) layer of the atmosphere
• Temperatures INCREASE with altitude. (In other
  words, as we go higher, the temperature
  increases)
• Highest temperatures - can reach 1,000 degrees C
  and higher.

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Difference between heat and temperature

• Website

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Temperature and altitude

• As you increase altitude, what happens to
  temperature?
• It goes back and forth (increasing and decreasing
  depending on the layer)

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Air pressure and altitude

• Air pressure the measure of the force with
  which air molecules push on a surface
• As you increase altitude, what happens to air
  pressure?
• It decreases

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How do we measure air pressure?

• The instruments that measure air pressure are
  called barometers
• Keeping track of how the pressure is changing is
  important for forecasting the weather.