PHYSICS OF THE

ATMOSPHERE
THE LAYERS OF
THE
ATMOSPHERE
The atmosphere is a protective layer of
gases which surrounds the Earth - it has
main layers, each with their own
individual characteristics.
The atmosphere is split into 4 main
layers based on temperature.
• The troposphere is the lowest layer of our
atmosphere. Starting at ground level, it
extends upward to about 10 km (6.2 miles or
about 33,000 feet) above sea level. We
humans live in the troposphere, and nearly all
weather occurs in this lowest layer. Most
clouds appear here, mainly because 99% of
the water vapor in the atmosphere is found in
the troposphere. Air pressure drops, and
temperatures get colder, as you climb higher
in the troposphere.
•The next layer up is called the stratosphere. The stratosphere extends from the top of the troposphere to about 50 km (31 miles) above the ground. The
infamous ozone layer is found within the stratosphere. Ozone molecules in this layer absorb high-energy ultraviolet (UV) light from the Sun, converting
the UV energy into heat. Unlike the troposphere, the stratosphere actually gets warmer the higher you go! That trend of rising temperatures with
altitude means that air in the stratosphere lacks the turbulence and updrafts of the troposphere beneath. Commercial passenger jets fly in the lower
stratosphere, partly because this less-turbulent layer provides a smoother ride. The jet stream flows near the border between the troposphere and the
stratosphere.
•Above the stratosphere is the mesosphere. It extends upward to a height of about 85 km (53 miles) above our planet. Most meteors burn up in the
mesosphere. Unlike the stratosphere, temperatures once again grow colder as you rise up through the mesosphere. The coldest temperatures in Earth's
atmosphere, about -90° C, are found near the top of this layer. The air in the mesosphere is far too thin to breathe; air pressure at the bottom of the
layer is well below 1% of the pressure at sea level, and continues dropping as you go higher.
•The layer of very rare air above the mesosphere is called the thermosphere. High-energy X-rays and UV radiation from the Sun are absorbed in the
thermosphere, raising its temperature to hundreds or at times thousands of degrees. However, the air in this layer is so thin that it would feel freezing
cold to us! In many ways, the thermosphere is more like outer space than a part of the atmosphere. Many satellites actually orbit Earth within the
thermosphere! Variations in the amount of energy coming from the Sun exert a powerful influence on both the height of the top of this layer and the
temperature within it. Because of this, the top of the thermosphere can be found anywhere between 500 and 1,000 km (311 to 621 miles) above the
ground. Temperatures in the upper thermosphere can range from about 500° C (932° F) to 2,000° C (3,632° F) or higher. The aurora, the Northern Lights
and Southern Lights, occur in the thermosphere.
•Although some experts consider the thermosphere to be the uppermost layer of our atmosphere, others consider the exosphere to be the actual "final
frontier" of Earth's gaseous envelope. As you might imagine, the "air" in the exosphere is very, very, very thin, making this layer even more space-like
than the thermosphere. In fact, air in the exosphere is constantly - though very gradually - "leaking" out of Earth's atmosphere into outer space. There is
no clear-cut upper boundary where the exosphere finally fades away into space. Different definitions place the top of the exosphere somewhere
between 100,000 km (62,000 miles) and 190,000 km (120,000 miles) above the surface of Earth. The latter value is about halfway to the Moon!
•The ionosphere is not a distinct layer like the others mentioned above. Instead, the ionosphere is a series of regions in parts of the mesosphere and
thermosphere where high-energy radiation from the Sun has knocked electrons loose from their parent atoms and molecules. The electrically charged
atoms and molecules that are formed in this way are called ions, giving the ionosphere its name and endowing this region with some special properties.
UNEVEN HEATING OF THE
EARTH FROM THE SUN
Atmospheric circulation is the movement of air at all levels of the
atmosphere over all parts of the planet. The driving force behind
atmospheric circulation is solar energy, which heats the
atmosphere with different intensities at the equator, the middle
latitudes, and the poles. The main reason for this is the curvature of
the Earth. This curvature means that at higher latitudes the
radiation is spread over much larger surface area than at the
equator. The radiation also travels through a greater depth of
atmosphere near the poles, in comparison to the equator, so more
radiation is lost to scattering and absorption by gases and particles
in the atmosphere. The rotation of Earth on its axis and the unequal
arrangement of land and water masses on the planet also
contribute to various features of atmospheric circulation.
THE CELLS
There are three wind cells or circulation belts between the equator and each pole: the trade
winds (Hadley cells), prevailing westerlies (Ferrell cells), and polar easterlies (polar Hadley
cells).
The trade winds or Hadley cells are named after the English scientist George Hadley (1685–
1768), who first described them in 1753. As air is heated at the equator, it rises in the
troposphere, the lowest 10 miles (16 kilometers) of Earth's atmosphere. In the wake of the
warm rising air, low pressure develops at the equator. When the air reaches the top of the
troposphere, called the tropopause, it can rise no farther and begins to move toward the
poles, cooling in the process. At about 30 degrees latitude north and south, the cooled air
descends back to the surface, pushing the air below it toward the equator, since air flows
always move toward areas of low pressure. When the north and south trade winds meet at the
equator and rise again, an area of calm develops because of the lack of cross-surface winds.
Early mariners called this area the doldrums (from an Old English word meaning dull) because
they feared their sailing ships would be stranded by the lack of wind.
While most of the trade-wind air that sinks at 30 degrees latitude returns to the equator, some
of it flows poleward. At about 60 degrees latitude north and south, this air mass meets much
colder polar air (the areas where this occurs are known as polar fronts). The warmer air is
forced upward by the colder air to the tropopause, where most of it moves back toward the
equator, sinking at about 30 degrees latitude to continue the cycle again. These second
circulation belts over the middle latitudes between 30 degrees and 60 degrees are the
prevailing westerlies or Ferrell cells, named after the American meteorologist William Ferrell
(1817–1891), who discovered them in 1856. Calm regions also occur at 30 degrees latitude
where Hadley cells and Ferrell cells meet because of the lack of lateral wind movement. These
regions were given the name horse latitudes by sailors bringing horses to the Americas.
Stranded by the lack of winds, sailors often ate their horses as supplies ran low.
The air at the top of polar fronts that does not return toward the equator moves, instead,
poleward. At the poles, this air cools, sinks, and flows back to 60 degrees latitude north and
south. These third circulation belts over the poles are known as polar easterlies or polar
Hadley cells because they flow in the same direction as the Hadley cells near the equator.
However, they are not as powerful since they lack the solar energy present at the equator.
THE CORIOLIS
EFFECT AND
THE
SUBTROPICAL
JET STREAMS
Because of the Coriolis effect we know
that in the northern hemisphere, an air
parcel travelling towards the North Pole
is deflected towards the east, and the
analogs.
To account for jet streams, let’s consider
the top of the Hadley cell. As air moves
towards higher latitudes, it stars to be
deflected by the Coriolis force. By the
time it reaches approximately 30° (say,
north), it is moving in an eastward
direction resulting in the Subtropical Jet
Stream (curly line in the next slide).
THE POLAR
FRONT JET
This jet sits at the boundary between the
rising branches of the Polar and Ferrel
cells. It marks the boundary between
cold polar air and warm tropical air,
known as the Polar Front, being caused
by the temperature contrast.