TOPIC 2 – The Earth Atmosphere, its composition and its

physical properties
INTRODUCTION
Earth is the only planet in
the solar system with an
atmosphere that can sustain
life. The blanket of gases not
only contains the air that we
breathe but also protects us
from the blasts of heat and
radiation emanating from the
sun. It warms the planet by
day and cools it at night.
A. Earth Atmosphere
- is similar to a jacket for our planet. It surrounds our planet, keeps us warm,
gives us oxygen to breathe, and it is where our weather happens. It is composed of
about 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, and 0.93% argon. The remainder, less than 0.1%,
contains such trace gases as water vapor, carbon dioxide, and ozone. All of these
trace gases have important effects on Earth’s climate.

Astronauts aboard the International Space Station took this image showing Earth's atmosphere and moon on July 31,
2011.
Composition of air

According to NASA, the gases in Earth's atmosphere include:

•Nitrogen — 78 percent
•Oxygen — 21 percent
•Argon — 0.93 percent
•Carbon dioxide — 0.04 percent
•Trace amounts of neon, helium, methane, krypton and hydrogen, as well as water vapor
B. The features of the different layers of the atmosphere

Earth's atmosphere
is divided into four
main layers:
-Troposphere
-Stratosphere
-Mesosphere
-Thermosphere
Atmosphere layers
Atmosphere layers
1.) Troposphere
-is the innermost layer of Earth’s
atmosphere and the layer that we
call home.
-This layer is 10 km thick
-“Tropos” means change and its
name came from the weather
that is constantly changing and
mixing up the gases in this part
of our atmosphere.
Atmosphere layers
2.) Stratosphere
-“Strat” means layer and this layer
of our atmosphere has its own set of
layers.
-This is where you’ll find the very
important ozone layer. 
-This layer is 35 km thick
-There are no storms or turbulence
here to mix up the air, so cold,
heavy air is at the bottom and warm,
light air is at the top.
Atmosphere layers
3.) Mesosphere 
-“Meso” means middle, and this is the
highest layer of the atmosphere in
which the gases are all mixed up rather
than being layered by their mass
-This layer is 35 km thick
-In this layer you won’t be able to breath
because the air and gas here is thin
-Where meteors burn up because of the
friction it made to the thin air here and it
create heat.
Atmosphere layers
4.) Thermosphere 
-“Thermo” means heat, so the
temperature here can reach up to
4,500F
-This layer is 513 km thick
-This is where the International Space
Station orbits the Earth.
-Also the layer where most of the
ionosphere located that form this
bright beautiful bands of light called
auroras.
C. The properties of water vapor in the atmosphere
Water vapour
is the primary form of
atmospheric moisture and it
is extremely important in
forming the moisture supply
for dew, frost, fog, clouds,
and precipitation. It is the
most potent greenhouse
gas in Earth’s atmosphere.
The warmer the surface, the
greater the evaporation rate
of water from the surface.
C. The properties of water vapor in the atmosphere

EVAPORATION
It happens when
a liquid substance
becomes a gas. When
water is heated, it
evaporates. The molecules
move and vibrate so
quickly that they escape
into the atmosphere as
molecules of water vapor.
C. The properties of water vapor in the atmosphere
CONDENSATION
is the process by which
water vapor in the air is
changed into liquid water.
As condensation occurs
and liquid water forms from
the vapor, the water
molecules become more
organized and heat is
released into the
atmosphere as a result.
C. The properties of water vapor in the atmosphere
Vapour pressure 
is a measure of the tendency
of a material to change into the
gaseous or vapour state, and it
increases with temperature. The
temperature at which the vapour
pressure at the surface of a
liquid becomes equal to
the pressure exerted by the
surroundings is called the boiling
point of the liquid. The pressure
of the water vapour in the air
expressed in hPa.
C. The properties of water vapor in the atmosphere
Saturated Vapour Pressure
The maximum vapour
pressure in the air at a given
temperature.
The process of evaporation in
a closed container will proceed
until there are as many
molecules returning to the liquid
as there are escaping. At this
point the vapor is said to be
saturated, and the pressure of
that vapor is called the saturated
vapor pressure.
C. The properties of water vapor in the atmosphere
Relative humidity
the amount of water
vapor present in air
expressed as a percentage of
the amount needed for
saturation at the same
temperature.
it is a ratio of actual vapor
pressure divided by saturated
vapor pressure then multiply
by 100 to obtain the
percentage of relative
humidity.
C. The properties of water vapor in the atmosphere
Onboard the vessel we are
using psychrometer for getting
the relative humidity of the
atmosphere.
The process is that we have
to get the difference between the
dry and wet bulb temperature
then we will be able to know the
depression of temperature and
we can get the value of relative
humidity in the conversion table
that is provided on the vessel.
C. The properties of water vapor in the atmosphere
Problem Solving:
Example:
Dry Bulb = 29 C
Wet Bulb = 25 C
4 C (Dep. of Temp.)
Therefore :
-to get the Relative humidity,
use the dry-bulb temp. which is 29C
and the depression of temperature
which is 4C in the Conversion table
provided and you will get the RH of
72%.
C. The properties of water vapor in the atmosphere
Absolute humidity
is the measure of water
vapor in the air, regardlessof
temperature. It expressed as
grams of moisture per cubic
meter of air (g/m3).
The maximum absolute
humidity of warm air at
30C(86F) is approx. 30 g/m3
and the maximum for cold air
at 0C(32F) is approx. 5g/m3.
C. The properties of water vapor in the atmosphere
Dew point
Is the temperature at which
the atmosphere is saturated with
water vapour, when it is cooled
without changing its pressure or
vapour content.
In meteorology the dew point is
the temperature at which the air can
no longer hold all the water vapour.
And it is always lower than or
equal to the air temperature.
C. The properties of water vapor in the atmosphere
Frost point
is a temperature, below 0° C
(32° F), at which moisture in the
air will condense as a layer
of frost on any exposed surface.
The frost point is analogous to
the dew point, the temperature at
which the water condenses in
liquid form; both the frost point
and the dew point depend upon
the relative humidity of the air.
Heat & Temperature

Heat – any form of energy

releases which raise the
temperature of a body.

Temperature – degree of heat

contained on a body
Heat & Temperature

Heat Transfer
Conduction – Direct contact of
molecules.

Radiation – In all direction of space

vacuum without any medium.

Convection – Through heated

body, gases and smoke
Heat & Temperature
Properties of Temperature

Horizontal Variation – Change in temperature due to change in

latitude, due to uneven solar heating.

Vertical Variation – Decrease in temperature with an increase

of altitude or height.

Temperature Inversion – Abrupt increase instead of decrease

temperature with height
Heat & Temperature

Conversion of Temperature
Fahrenheit – F = (1.8 x C) +32
Celsius – C = (F-32) / 1.8

Absolute scale
Kelvin – K = C + 273 if Celsius C = K – 273
Rankin – R = F + 460 if Fahrenheit F = R – 460
Heat & Temperature

Problem Solving: Problem Solving:

Example: Example:
Convert 88F to Celsius Convert 31.11C to Fahrenheit
C = (F-32) / 1.8 F = (1.8 x C) + 32
= (88 – 32) / 1.8 = (1.8 x 31.11) + 32
= 56 / 1.8 = 56 + 32
C = 31.11 F = 88
REFERENCE

 https://www.encyclopedia.com/
 https://www.space.com/
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KXf39bQH6iE
 https://www.britannica.com/