The Atmosphere, its Composition and the Physical Properties

Atmosphere
An atmosphere is a layer of gases that surrounds the Earth. The gravitational attraction of Earth keeps it close to
the planet's surface. Argon, oxygen, and nitrogen are the three basic constituents of the atmosphere. The
atmosphere contains the air we breathe, holds the sun's warmth and prevents it from escaping into space,
protects life from harmful solar radiation, plays an important role in the Earth's water cycle, and helps keep the
Earth's atmosphere moderate. The atmosphere and space have no boundaries. The atmosphere thins and
becomes denser until it "mixes" with outer space.

Layers of the Atmosphere

Troposphere

The troposphere is the lowest layer of the atmosphere. It begins at ground level and extends upward to about 10
kilometers above sea level. The limit layer is the lowest layer of the lower atmosphere, and the tropopause is the
highest layer. The troposphere contains 75% of all air in the atmosphere. Most mists appear in this layer
because it contains 99 percent of the water fume in the environment. Temperature and pneumatic force decrease
as one ascends into the lower atmosphere. When a bundle of air moves upwards, it expands. Cooling occurs
when the air expands. Hence, the troposphere's base is hotter than its top because the air on the Earth's surface
retains the sun's energy, warms up, and moves upward, where it cools off.

Stratosphere

The stratosphere is located above the lower atmosphere. It extends from the lowest point of the lower
atmosphere to around 50 kilometers (31 miles) above the ground. The stratospheric ozone layer exists. This
layer's ozone particles absorb high-energy bright (UV) light from the Sun and convert it to heat. In this vein,
unlike the lower atmosphere, the stratosphere becomes hotter as one ascends.

Mesosphere

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The mesosphere is located above the stratosphere. It rises to a height of about 85 kilometers (53 miles) above
our planet. The majority of meteors burn up in the mesosphere. Unlike the stratosphere, temperatures continue
to drop as you ascend through the mesosphere. Near the top of this layer, the coldest temperatures in the Earth's
atmosphere, around -90° C (-130° F), can be found. The air in the mesosphere is far too thin to breathe (the air
pressure at the bottom of the layer is well below 1% of that at sea level and continues to fall as one ascends).

Thermosphere
 The thermosphere is the layer of extremely rare air above the mesosphere. The thermosphere absorbs high-
energy X-rays and UV radiation from the Sun, raising its temperature to hundreds or even thousands of degrees.
However, the air in this layer is so thin that we would feel cold! In many ways, the thermosphere resembles
outer space rather than an element of the atmosphere. Many satellites orbit the Earth within the thermosphere!
Variations in the amount of energy emitted by the Sun have a significant impact on both the height of the top of
this layer and its temperature. As a result, the thermosphere's top can be found anywhere between 500 and 1,000
km (311 to 621 miles) above the ground. Upper thermosphere temperatures can range from 500° C (932° F) to
2,000° C (3,632° F) or higher. The aurora, also known as the Northern and Southern Lights, occur in the
thermosphere.

Exosphere

The exosphere is the upper portion region of Earth's atmosphere that progressively fades into space. The air in
the exosphere is incredibly thin, almost identical to the airless void of outer space. The exosphere is the
outermost region of our atmosphere. This layer is what separates the rest of the atmosphere from space. It is
approximately 6,200 miles (10,000 kilometers) thick. That's almost as big as the Earth. The exosphere is
extremely vast. That means you have to be very far away from Earth to reach outer space.

The exosphere contains gases such as hydrogen and helium, but they are widely dispersed. There is a lot of
white space between them. It's very cold and there's no air to breathe.

The Solar Radiation

While solar radiation event on the Earth's atmosphere is substantially stable, radiation incident on the Earth's
surface varies greatly due to:

 Absorption and scattering are two examples of atmospheric effects.

 Water vapour, clouds, and pollution are examples of local variations in the atmosphere.
 The location's latitude
 The time of day and the season of the year

The aforementioned effects have a variety of effects on the radiation absorbed at the Earth's surface. Variations
in the total effectiveness obtained, the spectral content of the light, and the angle from which beam is incident
on a surface are examples of these changes. Furthermore, a substantial shift is that the significant variation of
solar radiation at a specific location increases dramatically. The variability is caused by both local factors such
as clouds and seasonal fluctuations, as well as other factors such as the duration of the day at a given latitude.
Due to local atmospheric phenomena such as clouds, desert regions tend to have lower variations. Seasonal
variability is low in equatorial regions

The Solar Irradiation

The Sun's radiant energy is the primary source of energy for the Earth. The solar irradiance is a measurement
and reporting of this radiant energy. Total Solar Irradiance (TSI) is the total amount of radiation measured;
spectral irradiance is the amount of radiation measured as a function of wavelength. Light of various
wavelengths reaches various parts of the Earth's atmosphere.

The Measurement of Solar Irradiation

Solar irradiance measurements are made up of worldwide and/or direct radioactivity measurements taken at
regular intervals all through the day. The measurements are taken with a pyranometer (which measures global
radiation) and/or a pyrheliometer (measuring direct radiation).

The thermopile (which measures heat directly reaching the surface) and reference cell are the two most common sensors
used as pyranometers. A thermopile is a collection of temperature sensors that communally quantify the difference in
temperature between the irradiated and dark sides.

CAUSES OF SATURATION
1. Evaporation causes air to become saturated.
 This makes more sense because evaporation is required for water vapor to enter the atmosphere. Temperature
affects evaporation, so if it's warm, the molecules move more quickly and highly probable to become a gas.

2. When air is cooled, it can become saturated.

Because colder air can hold less water vapor, cooling some hot air that is not saturated will eventually cause it
to become saturated. Technically, this is somewhat more complex, and the air does not 'hold' the water vapor,
but warmer air contains more water vapor than cool air.

3. A saturated air parcel can be formed by mixing two unsaturated air masses.
The two air masses are not saturated in this case, but when they combine, they become saturated. Assume you
have cold air hovering above a hot body of water. As water evaporates, more water vapor is added to the cold
air, starting to cause it to become saturated. Prior to this mixing, neither the cold air nor the air containing lake
water vapor were saturated. However, after blending, the cold air gained sufficient water vapor to meet the
target.