EARTH’S ATMOSPHERE

INTRODUCTION• The atmosphere of Earth is a layer of gases

surrounding the planet Earth.• The atmosphere protects life on Earth.• The atmosphere becomes thinner and thinner

with increasing altitude, with no definite boundary between the atmosphere and outer space.

COMPOSITION

• 78% nitrogen• 20%oxygen• 2% other gases

LAYERS of the

ATMOSPHERE

TROPOSPHERE• begins at the surface and extends to between

9 km (30,000 ft) at the poles and 17 km (56,000 ft) at the equator

• mostly heated by transfer of energy from the surface

• TROPOPAUSE - is the boundary between the troposphere and stratosphere.

STRATOSPHERE• extends from the tropopause to about 51 km

(32 mi; 170,000 ft). • Temperature increases with height• STRATOPAUSE - is the boundary between the

stratosphere and mesosphere which, typically is at 50 to 55 km (31 to 34 mi; 160,000 to 180,000 ft).

OZONE LAYER

• is contained within the stratosphere and is mainly located in the lower portion of the stratosphere from about 15–35 km (9.3–22 mi; 49,000–110,000 ft)

NACREOUS CLOUDS• called mother-of-pearl clouds• they are filmy sheets slowly curling and

uncurling, stretching and contracting in the semi-dark sky.

• are seen mostly during winter at high latitudes like Scandinavia, Iceland, Alaska and Northern Canada. Sometimes, however, they occur as far south as England.

MESOSPHERE

• extends from the stratopause to 80–85 km (50–53 mi; 260,000–280,000 ft)

• MESOPAUSE - the temperature minimum that marks the top of the mesosphere

NOCTILUCENT CLOUDS• are tenuous cloud-like phenomena that are

the "ragged-edge" of a much brighter and pervasive polar cloud layer called polar mesospheric clouds in the upper atmosphere.

• They are made of crystals of water ice.• are most commonly observed in the summer

months at latitudes between 50° and 70° north and south of the equator.

THERMOSPHERE• the inversion is a result of the extremely low

density of molecules.• The International space Station orbits in this

layer, between 320 and 380 km (200 and 240 mi).

• TURBOPAUSE – where homsphere and heterosphere divides.

• Homosphere and heterosphere are defined by whether the atmospheric gases are well mixed.

• EXOBASE - The top of the thermosphere is the bottom of the exosphere

IONOSPHERE• the part of the atmosphere that is ionized by

solar radiation• stretches from 50 to 1,000 km (31 to 620 mi;

160,000 to 3,300,000 ft) • typically overlaps both the exosphere and the

thermosphere. It forms the inner edge of the magnetosphere.

AURORA

EXOSPHERE

• The outermost layer of Earth's atmosphere extends from the exobase upward

• mainly composed of hydrogen and helium

POLLUTANTSin the

ATMOSPHEREPOLLUTANT - A substance in the air that can cause harm to humans and the environment is known as an air pollutant. Pollutants can be in the form of solid particles, liquid droplets, or gases. In addition, they may be natural or man-made.

CLASSES OF POLLUTANTS• Sulphur Oxide - produced by volcanoes and in various

industrial processes• Nitrogen Oxide - emitted from high temperature

combustion, and are also produced naturally during thunderstorms by electrical discharge.

• Carbon Monoxide - is a colourless, odorless, non-irritating but very poisonous gas.

• Carbon Dioxide - a colourless, odorless, non-toxic greenhouse gases emmited from sources such as combustion, cement production, and respiration.

• Volatile Organic Compounds - divided into the separate categories of methane (CH4) and non-methane. Methane contributes to enhanced global warming.

• Particulate Matter - are tiny particles of solid or liquid suspended in a gas.

• Chlorofluorocarbon - harmful to the ozone layer emitted from products currently banned from use.

• Ammonia - from agricultural processes. • Radioactive Pollutants - produced by nuclear

explosion, nuclear events, war explosives, and natural processes such as the radioactive decay of radon.

• Toxic metals, such as lead, cadmium and copper.

Prepared by: MAS, Pamela Bianca E.

MANAHAN, Sophia Nicole A.LOPEZ, Realyn

LIBRES, Mary GraceJAINAR, Glaisa Mae

GAMIAO, Allan Craig W.PSYCH 1-D

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