The Atmosphere

• Earth's atmosphere is about 300 miles thick, but not most of it is within 10 miles the surface.
• At sea level, the air pressure of the earth's atmosphere is about 14.7 pounds per square inch
• At 10,000 feet, the air pressure of the earth's atmosphere is 10 pounds per square inch.
• Earth's atmosphere is divided into five main layers: exosphere, thermosphere, mesosphere, stratosphere, and troposphere
• The gases in Earth's atmosphere include Nitrogen 78%, Oxygen 21%, Argon 0.93%, Carbon dioxide 0.04%, and trace gases.
• Troposphere - this layer is closest to earth's surface
• Troposphere is 7 to 20km thick and contains half of the earth's atmosphere
• The process of condensation or the water cycle happens at the troposphere
• clouds are found at the troposphere
• Nearly all of the dusts in the atmosphere are at the troposphere
• Stratosphere - it is the second layer of the atmosphere
• Stratosphere starts above 20km and ends about 50km above the ground
• Ozone is abundant at the stratosphere
• Ozone heats the atmosphere while also absorbing harmful radiation from the sun.
• The air the stratosphere is arid
• Stratosphere is where jet aircraft and weather balloons fly
• Mesosphere extends from 50km to 85km high
• Mesopause - the top of the mesosphere and the coldest part of the earth's atmosphere
• the temperature of the mesopause is averaging about -90 Celsius
• Mesosphere is the layer of the atmosphere that is hard to study
• Scientists say that meteors burn up at Mesosphere
• Thermosphere extends from about 90km to about 500km and 1000km above the Earth's surface
• Thermosphere - Temperatures here can get up to 1500 Celsius
• The air density is so low at thermosphere, but it is still not outer space
• Thermosphere is where the space shuttle flew and where the International Space Station orbits earth
• Aurora Borealis and Aurora Australis is the excess energy from the charged particles in a space collision of molecules and atoms. It is what the atoms shed by emitting photons of light.
• Exosphere is highest layer of the atmosphere and is extremely thin.
• Exosphere is where the atmosphere merges into outer space
• exosphere is composed of very widely dispersed particles of hydrogen and helium
• Weather is a specific event--like a rainstorm or a sunny day-- that happens over a few hours, days or weeks.
• Climate is the average weather conditions in a place over 30 years or more
• Earth's atmosphere is a jacket of gases that surrounds our planet
• atmosphere keeps the planet warm, gives living organisms oxygen to breathe and it is where weather and climate occur
• The greenhouse effect is a process that occurs when gases in Earth's atmosphere trap the Sun's heat
• Greenhouse effect makes Earth much warmer than it would be without an atmosphere
• The greenhouse effect is one of the things that makes earth a place suitable for life.
• Too much of greenhouse gases can cause Earth's atmosphere to trap more and more heat
• The main greenhouse gases are water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, ozone, nitrous oxide, and chlorofluorocarbons