Session 2

AviaCave 28 Days Meteorology Program

Atmosphere
 Atmosphere

• Actual Atmosphere

• ICAO Standard Atmosphere

• Jet Standard Atmosphere

 ICAO Standard Atmosphere - ISA

• A hypothetical vertical distribution of atmospheric temperature, pressure, and density that,

by international agreement, is taken to be representative of the atmosphere
• Used for pressure altimeter calibrations, aircraft performance calculations, aircraft and
missile design, ballistic tables, etc.
• The air is assumed to obey the perfect gas law and the hydrostatic equation, relating
temperature, pressure, and density variations in the vertical, that air contains no water vapor,
acceleration of gravity does not change with height.
• The parametric assumptions and physical constants used in preparing the current standard
atmosphere are as follows.
• Zero pressure altitude corresponds to that pressure that will support a column of mercury 760 mm
high. This pressure is taken to be 1.013250 × 106 dynes cm−2, or 1013.250 mb, and is known as one
standard atmosphere or one atmosphere.
• The gas constant for dry air is 2.8704 × 106 ergs gm−1K−1.
• The ice point at one standard atmosphere pressure is 273.16 K.
• The acceleration of gravity is 980.665 cm s−2.
• The temperature at zero pressure altitude is 15°C or 288.15 K.
• The density at zero pressure altitude is 0.0012250 gm cm−3
• The lapse rate of temperature in the tropopause is 6.5°C km−1.
• The pressure altitude of the tropopause is 11 km.
• The temperature at the tropopause is −56.5°C.
• Thus for meteorological use, One standard atmosphere = 760 mm Hg = 29.9213 in Hg =
1013.250 mb/hPa
 ICAO Standard Atmosphere

• MSL Temperature +15 deg C

• MSL Pressure 1013.25 hPa
• MSL Density 1225 g/m³
• Temp. decreases at 1.98 degC/1000 ft (6.5 deg C/km) upto
standard tropopause height of 11 km and remain constant at -
56.5 deg C upto 20 km. Above 20 km, rise by 1 deg C/km upto 32
km.
 Jet Standard Atmosphere

• As jet aircraft operate at temperatures below -56.5 deg C,

• JSA does not have a tropopause

• Temperatures continue fall @ 2 deg C/ 1000 ft, values rounded
off with no decimals
• All other values same as ISA
 Example 1 –
Flying below the Tropopause

• At 22,000 ft, OAT is -35 deg C.

• What is the deviation from ISA/JSA

• What is the implication of this Deviation

 Solution

ISA temp @ 1.98 deg C/1000 ft

22(000)x1.98 deg C = (43.56 – 15 = -28.56) deg C
OAT = -35, Therefore, ISA is 6.44 deg C warmer

JSA temp @ 2 deg C/1000 ft

22(000)x2 C = -44 deg C less + 15 deg C = -29 deg C
OAT is -35, therefore, JSA is 6 deg C warmer than OAT
or
the ambient (real world) temp is colder by 6 deg C

Also, ISA is always warmer than JSA below the tropopause

Implications?
 Example 2 –
Flying above Tropopause

• At 45,000 ft, OAT of Dubai is -70 deg C.

• What is the tropospheric height?

• What is the deviation from ISA/JSA

• What is the implication of this Deviation

 Solution

• ISA
• ISA tropopause is at 11 Kms or 36,300 ft
• Above ISA tropopause, temp. const at -56.5 C
• Hence, real world temp colder by 13.5 C
• JSA
• There is no tropopause in the JSA
• 45(000)x2 C = -90 C + 15 C = -75 C
• Hence, JSA is colder and the ambient (real world) is warmer by 5 C
• Above the ISA tropopause, ISA is always warmer than the JSA
• Therefore, the ISA, either below or above the ISA Tropopause, is always warmer
than the JSA
 Implications of Deviation

• On fuel load calculations

• By JSA, will always carry less fuel
• On A/c performance
• Closer the atmosphere to the JSA, higher the engine
performance

• Deviations are lower during winters

• Deviations lower in upper latitudes
 Heating of the Atmosphere

Atmosphere » Heating » Weather

Heating – two methods

1. Latent Heat – molecular scale absorption & release, based on work/energy

2. Sensible Heat – the type felt when too close to fire

Temperature measured in deg C, F & K/A – 0 deg K/A = -273 deg C

All molecular activity = 0 at 0 deg K
 LATENT HEAT
Sublimation / deposition

Condensation Freezing
Vapor > solid releases L/Heat

< Latent Heat >

Vapor < Latent Heat>
At 0 deg, 600 cals/g Liquid 80 cals/g for change of state Solid
Sublimation 680 cals/g
Solid > Vapor absorbs
Evaporation Latent Heat
Thawing

Sublimation
 Latent Heat
• Latent heat is the heat required for a phase change
• Ice to water (latent heat of melting/fusion)
• Need to add 80 Calories for every 1 gm of to melt to 1 gm of
water at 0 deg C

• Raising temperature of water from 0 deg to 100 deg

Celsius (sensible heat added)
• Need to add 100 Calories for every gram

• Water to water vapor (latent heat of

vaporization/condensation
• Need to add 540 Calories for every 1 gm of water to convert it to 1
gm of steam
 Phase
changes
1. Sublimination
2. Condensation –
Evaporation
3. Freezing -
Melting
 Heat
Water Vapor
Temperature (oC)

Boiling
100

Water

Implication?
Melting
0
Ice

Sensible Latent Sensible Latent Sensible

80 100 540 Calories/gram

Heat Absorbed As —>

 Atmospheric Heating

Atmosphere heated by incoming energy from sun –

insolation (short wavelength ultraviolet radiation)
• Conduction
• Transport of energy (charge) solely as a consequence of random
motions of individual molecules (ions, electrons) not moving
together in coherent groups.
 Convection

• Convection
• In general, mass motions within a fluid
resulting in transport and mixing of the
properties of that fluid.
 Condensation

• Condensation
• In general, the physical process by which
a vapor becomes a liquid or solid; the
opposite of evaporation, although on
the molecular scale, both processes are
always occurring.
 Radiation

• Radiation
• 1. The process by which electromagnetic radiation is propagated through
free space. The propagation takes place at the speed of light (3.00 x 108
m s−1 in vacuum) by way of joint (orthogonal) oscillations in the electric
and magnetic fields. This process is to be distinguished from other forms
of energy transfer such as conduction and convection.
• 2. Propagation of energy by any physical quantity governed by a wave
equation.
• 3. See alpha ray, beta ray.
Complete Energy Budget
 Differential Heating

• Atmosphere is Stratified
• Air is poor conductor of heat
• Spatial & latitudinal temperature variations
• Heating time lags
• Differences in topographical, surface and vegetative cover

• Results in differential heating.

 Surface Heating

• Types of Surface
• Sand & Rocks absorb > energy during day
During day, sandy beaches get hotter than soil or grass areas
• Sand & Rocks radiate > energy during night
During night, sandy beaches get cooler faster than soil or grass areas
 Heating – Time of Year

• Earths’ axis of rotation tilted by 23.5 deg

• Sun moves from Tropic of Capricorn – 23.5 S/Dec – Cancer 23.5 N/Jun
• N-Hemi, Summer solstice – 21 Jun, winter solstice 21 Dec
• Mar & Sep, sun over equator – referred to as Equinoxes – 12h day & night

• Earths’ orbit of revolution is an Oblate Ellipsoid with sun at one

of its foci
• Earths’ axis of revolution tilted at 11.5 deg

• Earths’ shape is an oblate spheroid – 1/298.3

• Unequal distribution of 70% water surface
• Differences of crust composition over land
• Variation of heights over land
 The Latitude

High Latitude, large surface area

Low Wm²

Low Latitude, small surface area

Earth
High Wm²

Solar Heating – effect of Latitude

 Diurnal Variation – over Land

• Temp. changes on a 12h/24h basis

• Surface temp. measured at 1.25m height
• Dry/Wet bulb, Stevenson screen, facing south
• Till 30 mins after sunrise, incoming s/w solar radiation =
outgoing L/w radiation
• Coolest 30 mins after sunrise, if no clouding
• Max. temp. reached at 1400h – LMT (In=Out radn), if no
clouding
• Over sea, minimal diurnal variation
 Temperature Vs Height

• T-ø gram, stability

• Inversions
• Tropopause inversion
• Subsidence inversion
• Valley inversion
• Frontal Inversion
• Friction Layer inversion
 Pressure
• hectoPascal(hPa) = millibar
• P Vs Ht
Level in atmosphere:ft Sea Level 20,000 40,000

Change in height 27 50 100

Resulting in 1 hPa:ft

Level in Atmosphere:ft Approximate Pressure:hPa Level in Atmosphere:ft Approximate Pressure:hPa

Sea Level 1013 30,000 300

10,000 700 34,000 250

18,000 500 38,000 200

24,000 400 53,000 100

 Pressure Data

• QFE : At airfield setting point

• QNH : QFE reduced to MSL using ISA, used by pilots/ATC
• QNE : 1013 set on altimeter sub-scale, will on landing, give an altitude known
as the QNE value
• SPS : Standard Pressure Setting for flights above transition altitude, where
reports are made in FL
• QFF : QFE reduced to MSL the temperature at the Station, which is an
isothermal lapse rate. QFF used by Met and for plotting on Wx charts.
• If Airfield is at sea level, temp.=ISA, QNH = QFE
• Isobar at surface, Pressure contours aloft
• On weather maps, over tropics, isobars at 2 hPa intervals
 Air Density

Density is the measure of the number of molecules in a fixed area,

normally in a cubic metre, and expressed as weight of those
molecules in grams.
At msl, the wt of a column of air over 1m³ is 1225 g. Density = 1225 g/m³
Density decreases with increase in temp
Density increases with decrease in temperature
Density decreases with increase of water vapor content in a given
volume of air.
Density increases with decrease of water vapor content in a given
volume of air
 Water in Atmosphere

• WVC – actual amount of H²O contained in specified amount of dry air,

expressed as g of WV/Kg of dry air
• Abs Humidity – Actual amount of WV present in a volume of air,
expressed as g/m³ of air
• RH – Amount of WV present in the atmosphere, expressed as % of amount
that can be held at that temperature. Holds 4 Kg, can hold 8 Kg, RH = 50%
• Dew Point – The temperature of the air at which RH is 100% is known as
the Dew Point. Any further addition of moisture to this volume of air will
cause condensation. Thus, higher the temp., lower the RH, with no change in
DP.