The Composition and Structure of the

Atmosphere
Atmosphere –
The mixture of
gases, water
droplets, and
solid particles
above the earth’s
surface
Thickness of the Atmosphere
• How high is the atmosphere?
• No defined top
• 99.99997% of atmosphere is below 100 km (60 mi)
• Weather occurs in lowest 11 km (7 mi)
The Evolution of the Atmosphere
• Earth’s early atmosphere contained mostly hydrogen and
helium

• Modern atmosphere began to form

– through outgassing by volcanic eruptions, and
– possibly through collisions of comets with earth
– (Both supplying mostly carbon dioxide and water vapor)
The Evolution of the Atmosphere
• Water vapor condensed and precipitated to form
oceans
• Carbon dioxide lost to oceans
• Oxygen released first through primitive oceanic
bacteria, later through plants
• Plants further reduced carbon dioxide
• Nitrogen slowly increased over long periods of time
through outgassing
• The atmosphere today contains:
• Gases (permanent and variable)
• Water droplets (clouds and
precipitation)
• Microscopic solid particles
(aerosols)
 The Permanent Gases
• form a constant proportion of the atmosphere
• have long residence times (thousands to millions of
years)
 The Variable Gases
• vary in atmospheric concentration in both time and
space
Composition of the Atmosphere
• Two gases  Nitrogen and
Oxygen
• Make up 99 % of the volume of
clean, dry air.
• Although these gases are the
most plentiful components of the
atmosphere and are of great
significance to life on Earth, they
are of little or no importance in
affecting weather phenomena.
• Remaining 1 % 
– Inert gas argon (0.93 %)
– Tiny quantities of a number of
other gases
 Carbon Dioxide
• Carbon dioxide, variable components (water vapour, aerosols,
ozone)
• present in only minute amounts
• 0.0391 %, or 391 parts per million
• Nevertheless a meteorologically important constituent of air.
• It is of great interest to meteorologists
• because it is an efficient absorber of energy emitted by Earth
and thus influences the heating of the atmosphere.
• Although the proportion of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere
is relatively uniform, its percentage has been rising steadily for
more than a century.
• Pure C  relatively rare.
• Two minerals 
Diamond & Graphite
• Most C is bonded
chemically to other
elements
• Eg: CO2, CaCO3,
hydrocarbons (coal &
petroleum)
• Carbon  basic building
blocks of life  readily
combines with H and O.

Carbon cycle
 The Keeling Curve
• The CO2 increase  burning
of fossil fuels (coal and oil).
• Some of this additional
carbon dioxide is absorbed
by the waters of the ocean or
is used by plants, but more
than 40 % remains in the air.
• Estimates project that by
sometime in the second half
of the 21st century, CO2 levels
will be twice as high as pre-
industrial levels.
(Charles David Keeling)
• Changes in the atmosphere’s CO as
2
measured at Hawaii’s Mauna Loa
Observatory.
• The oscillations reflect the seasonal
variations in plant growth and decay in
the Northern Hemisphere.
• During the first 10 years of this record
(1958–1967), the average yearly CO 2
increase was 0.81 ppm. During the last
10 years (2001–2010) the average yearly
increase was 2.04 ppm. (Data from
NOAA)
Why is the graph showing so many ups and downs?
• Carbon dioxide is removed
from the air by
(Charles David Keeling)
photosynthesis.

• During spring and summer

season 

• There is vigorous plant

growth in the extensive land
areas of the Northern
Hemisphere  • As winter approaches…
• many plants die or shed leaves
• It aids the removal of carbon • The decay of organic matter
dioxide from the atmosphere, returns carbon dioxide to the air,
so the graph takes a dip. causing the graph to spike upward.
Variable components
• Air includes many gases and particles.

• Temporal and spatial variations exist

• Important examples:
– Water vapour - Aerosols - Ozone

– Usually present in small percentages

– Can have significant effects on weather and climate

 Water Vapor
• Amount varies considerably
• Nil to up to about 4 % by volume
• Such small fraction; Why is it still significant?
– It is the source of all clouds and precipitation

– Water vapor has other roles too..

• Like CO2, It has the ability to absorb heat given off by Earth,
as well as some solar energy.

– Therefore important when we examine the heating of the

atmosphere.
• When water changes from one state to another, such as
from a gas to a liquid or a liquid to a solid,

• it absorbs or releases heat.

• This energy is termed latent heat (means hidden heat).

• Water vapor in the atmosphere transports this latent heat

from one region to another.

• It is the energy source that drives many storms.

H
O
H

Ice crystal

Water (liquid state)

The Hydrologic Cycle
 Aerosols
• The movements of the atmosphere are sufficient to keep a
large quantity of solid and liquid particles suspended within
it.
• Although visible dust sometimes clouds the sky, these
relatively large particles are too heavy to stay in the air very
long.
• Still, many particles are microscopic and remain suspended
for considerable periods of time.
• They may originate from many sources, both natural and
human made.
• They include:
– sea salts from breaking waves,
– fine soil blown into the air,
– smoke and soot from fires,
– pollen and microorganisms lifted by the wind,
– ash and dust from volcanic eruptions,

• Collectively, these tiny solid and liquid particles are

called aerosols.
Aerosols (Particulate Matter)
• particles of different sizes and structures that are released
into the atmosphere
• Aerosols are most numerous in the lower atmosphere near their
primary source, Earth’s surface.

• Upper atmosphere is not free of them, because some dust is

carried to great heights by rising currents of air.

• Meteorites  also contribute particles as they disintegrate when

they pass through the atmosphere.

• From a meteorological standpoint, these tiny, often invisible

particles can be significant.

• First, many act as surfaces on which water vapor may condense,

an important function in the formation of clouds and fog.
• Second, aerosols can absorb or reflect incoming solar
radiation.

• Thus, when an air-pollution episode is occurring or when

ash fills the sky following a volcanic eruption, the amount
of sunlight reaching Earth’s surface can be measurably
reduced.

• Finally, aerosols contribute to an optical phenomenon we

have all observed—the varied hues of red and orange at
sunrise and sunset.
 Ozone
• Another important component of the atmosphere.
• It is a form of oxygen that combines three oxygen atoms into
each molecule (O3).
• Not the same as the oxygen we breathe (O2).
• There is very little ozone in the atmosphere.
• Overall, it represents just 3 out of every 10 million molecules.
• Distribution  not uniform.
• In the lowest portion of the atmosphere, ozone represents < 1
part in 100 million.
• It is concentrated well above the surface in a layer called the
stratosphere, between 10 and 50 kilometers (6 and 31 miles).
• In this altitude range, oxygen molecules (O2) are split into single
atoms of oxygen (O) when they absorb UV rays emitted by the Sun.

• Ozone is then created when a single atom of oxygen (O) and a

molecule of oxygen (O2) collide.

• Ozone is concentrated in the 10- to 50-kilometer height range

because a crucial balance exists there:

– The UV rays from the Sun is sufficient to produce single atoms

of oxygen, and
– there are enough gas molecules to bring about the required
collisions.
– Ozone layer in the atmosphere crucial for planet Earth.
– If it is reduced  the UV rays would pass through the
atmosphere and make land areas on our planet
inhabitable for most life.
Ground Level Ozone
• at upper level, ozone shields Earth
from sun’s harmful UV rays
• at ground level, ozone is harmful
pollutants
• formed from car, power and chemical
plant exhaust
• irritate respiratory system and
asthma; reduces lung function by
inflaming and damaging lining of
lungs
Ozone Depletion— A Global Issue
• loss of ozone high in the atmosphere consequence of human
activities a serious global-scale environmental problem.
• For nearly a billion years Earth’s ozone layer has protected life on the
planet.
• Past 50 years, people have unintentionally placed the ozone layer in
jeopardy by polluting the atmosphere.
• Offending chemicals are known as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs).
• They are versatile compounds that are chemically stable, odorless,
nontoxic, noncorrosive, and inexpensive to produce.
– coolants for air-conditioning and refrigeration equipment,
– cleaning solvents for electronic components,
– propellants for aerosol sprays, and
– production of certain plastic foams.
• Three scientists, Paul Crutzen, F. Sherwood Rowland, and Mario
Molina, studied the relationship (CFC vs Ozone layer).

• In 1974, they reported that CFCs were probably reducing the average
concentration of ozone in the stratosphere.

• They discovered that:

– because CFCs are practically inert (that is, not chemically active) in
the lower atmosphere,
– a portion of these gases gradually makes its way to the ozone layer,
– Here, sunlight separates the chemicals into their constituent atoms.
– The chlorine atoms released this way, through a complicated series
of reactions, have the net effect of removing some of the ozone.
The Antarctic Ozone Hole
• Ozone depletion by CFCs occurs
worldwide.
• ozone concentration measurements
 a sharp drop over Antarctica
during the Southern Hemisphere
spring (September and October).
• Later, during November and
December, the ozone
concentration recovers to more
normal levels.
• Between 1980, when it was
discovered, and the early 2000s, the
ozone hole intensified and grew
larger until it covered an area
roughly the size of North America.
Global CFCs

A global success story!

 Size matters. But how do scientist’s measure a
hole in the atmosphere?
• Researchers detect and measure the growth and break up of
the ozone hole with satellite instruments aboard Aura, Suomi-
NPP and NOAA-20 satellites.

• In 2021, NASA satellite observations determined the ozone

hole reached a maximum of 24.8 million square kilometers –
roughly the size of North America – before beginning to shrink
in mid-October.

• NOAA scientists at the South Pole Station record the ozone

layer's thickness by releasing weather balloons carrying
ozone-measuring instruments called ozonesondes that
measure the varying ozone concentrations as the balloon rises
into the stratosphere.
Weather Balloons and Radiosonde
• A weather or sounding
balloon is a balloon which
carries weather instruments
aloft to send back information
by means of a small,
expendable measuring
device called a radiosonde.
Launching of an ozone sonde:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2UrHCJqg8yU

Recovery of an ozone sonde:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4vqDG
3nv9z0
 Size matters. But how do scientist’s measure a
hole in the atmosphere?
• When the polar sun rises, NOAA
scientists make measurements with
a Dobson Spectrophotometer,

• an optical instrument that records

the total amount of ozone between
the surface and the edge of space
known as the total column ozone
value.

• In 2021, scientists recorded the

lowest total-column ozone value of
102 Dobson Units on October 7,
2021.
Cause for the formation of the hole:

• Caused in part by the relatively abundant ice particles in the

south polar stratosphere.

• The ice boosts the effectiveness of CFCs in destroying ozone,

thus causing a greater decline.

• The zone of maximum depletion is confined to the Antarctic

region by a swirling upper-level wind pattern.

• When this vortex weakens during the late spring, the ozone-
depleted air is no longer restricted and mixes freely with air
from other latitudes where ozone levels are higher.
Effects of Ozone Depletion
• Because ozone filters out most of the damaging UV radiation in
sunlight, a decrease in its concentration permits more of
these harmful wavelengths to reach Earth’s surface.

What are the effects of the increased ultraviolet radiation?

• Each 1 % decrease in the concentration of stratospheric ozone
increases the amount of UV radiation that reaches Earth’s
surface by about 2 %.

• Therefore, because ultraviolet radiation is known to induce

skin cancer, ozone depletion seriously affects human health.
• In addition to raising the risk of skin cancer..
• An increase in damaging UV radiation can
– negatively impact the human immune system,
– promote cataracts…
• The effects of additional UV radiation on animal and plant life
are also important.
– Crop yields and quality will be adversely affected.
• Some scientists also fear that increased UV radiation in the
Antarctic will penetrate the waters surrounding the continent
and impair or destroy the microscopic plants, called
phytoplankton, that represent the base of the food chain.
• A decrease in phytoplankton, in turn, could reduce the
population of copepods and krill that sustain fish, whales,
penguins, and other marine life in the high latitudes of the
Southern Hemisphere.
 Methane
• Methane (CH4) – A variable gas with residence time ~10 years
that has high potential for greenhouse warming
• Sources:
– Rice cultivation (7.4 Tg/yr (million metric tonnes),
– wetlands (140-280 Tg/yr)
– Biomass burning
– Fossil fuel extraction (85-100 Tg/yr)
– Animal digestion (85-95 Tg/yr)
– Termites (2-20 Tg/yr)
– Oceans (20-30 Tg/yr)
• Sinks
– Atmospheric chemical reactions
– Soils
• The methane cycle begins
in the soil where methane
gas is created by microbes.

• Soil methane is consumed

by methanotrophs
(microorganisms that feed
on methane).

• Methanogens make more

methane that
methanotrophs consume.
• Methanotrophs live in
drier soil layers above the
deep, wet oxygen poor
soils of swamps.

• Their “food” bubbles past

them on its way to the
surface, releasing
methane into the
atmosphere.

• This methane joins

methane from other
sources, such as landfills,
livestock and exploitation
of fossil fuels.
Methane
• Summary…