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The Air Up There

The Air Up There. The 5 Layers of Earth’s Atmosphere. Introduction/Origin. The Earth’s atmosphere consists of 5 layers, each with unique properties. The thickness of each layer varies due to latitude, season, and whether it is day or night.

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The Air Up There

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  1. The Air Up There The 5 Layers of Earth’s Atmosphere

  2. Introduction/Origin • The Earth’s atmosphere consists of 5 layers, each with unique properties. • The thickness of each layer varies due to latitude, season, and whether it is day or night. • Today’s atmosphere is believed to have formed when primordial Earth was “degassing” which occurred when volcanic eruptions released gasses into the environment

  3. Troposphere • The layer closest to Earth’s surface • It is where we live • Contains half of Earth’s atmosphere • Contains 99% of the water found in the atmosphere • Contains 75% of atmospheric gases • Most of Earth’s weather occurs here • Clouds occur here • Temperature decreases with altitude • Extends up 10 km

  4. Stratosphere • 10 to 50 km above Earth’s surface • Contains the ozone layer • Temperature increases with altitude due to absorption of sun’s radiation by ozone • The thinness of air at this level facilitates ozone depletion • Weather balloons are most efficient in this layer • Commercial jet aircraft fly here • Troposphere and stratosphere contain the most air

  5. Mesosphere • 50 to 85 km above Earth’s surface • Shooting stars occur here • Little is known about the mesosphere as it is difficult to get measuring instruments into this layer • Temperature decreases with altitude in the mesosphere • Air is so thin here that few molecules of gases ever make contact with each other

  6. Thermosphere (ionosphere) • 85 to 500 km above Earth’s surface • The thickest layer • Named for its temperature: temperatures climb sharply in the lower thermosphere but level off above this level. • Temperatures range from 500°C to 2000°C (932 to 3632°F) • The upper levels of the thermosphere are primarily atomic oxygen (O), atomic nitrogen (N), and helium • Space shuttles and satellites orbit in the thermosphere • Aurora primarily occur here due to the ionization (removal of electrons to create charged particles) of gases • Radio waves travel in this layer of electrically charged particles

  7. Exosphere • Occurs above 500 km above the Earth’s surface • An upper extreme is not known as the exosphere blends with outer space • Space shuttles orbit here but there are so few molecules that the wings of the shuttle are useless • Beyond the exosphere is outer space *

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