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How Does Earth’s Atmosphere Questions

Support Life on Earth? Asking yourself

questions as you
read about Earth’s
atmosphere can
The atmosphere is a thick layer of air that surrounds Earth. Without help identify what
this air, life would not be possible on the planet. The atmosphere is you do and do not
made up of a mixture of gases: about 78 percent nitrogen, 21 percent understand. Pause
after reading each
oxygen, 0.93 percent argon, and about 0.07 percent other gases. The passage of this
atmosphere also contains water vapor and fine dust in varying amounts. section and ask
The atmosphere acts as a blanket around the planet. Energy from the if you understand
Sun heats the surface of Earth. This energy is then transferred to the the passage’s main
idea, details, and
atmosphere from Earth by conduction and radiation. During both day vocabulary.
and night, the atmosphere near Earth’s surface absorbs energy. This
keeps the energy of the air temperature close to the surface of Earth
about the same as the temperature of Earth’ surface. In most places,
Earth’s surface and the air above it stay in a temperature range that
supports life.
Earth’s atmosphere is made of layers that have
different properties and that make life possible in
different ways. Each layer has the same general
composition, but the air’s density, temperature,
and pressure change with altitude.
The density of air in the atmosphere decreases
as altitude increases. Lower density means
that for any particular volume of air, there are
fewer molecules of the gases that make up air.
Because air is less dense at higher altitudes, air
pressure also decreases as altitude increases.
At the top of the highest mountains, the number of oxygen molecules
becomes so low that there are not enough of them in a single breath
to supply a person’s lungs with enough oxygen to support life. Mountain
climbers must carry oxygen tanks with them on the highest peaks.
Higher up, where airplanes and balloons fly, there are even fewer air
molecules. Air pressure is even lower. The air’s temperature tends to
decrease with altitude in the lowest level of the atmosphere.

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 Learning Set 4
1 • What Other
Factors
Is Weather
Factors
Interact
andInteract
How
to Cause
Is to
Weather
Cause
Weather
Measured?
Weather
Changes?
Changes?

Troposphere
The troposphere is the lowest layer of the atmosphere. It is the
layer closest to Earth. Weather takes place in the troposphere. The
troposphere is the only part of the atmosphere where people can live
without special protection. This layer is warm enough to support human
life because it is heated by the solar energy absorbed by the land
and water of the planet’s surface. Because of the weight of all the air
pushing down on it from above, the
troposphere has enough air pressure
for humans to get the oxygen they
need. Because air molecules in this
layer store energy given off by Earth’s
surface, this layer acts as insulation
to help keep the temperature around
us steady. This layer also is where
the water cycle occurs. Most kinds
of clouds, which are a key part of the
water cycle, occur in the troposphere.
Stratosphere
When you fly in a jet, you leave the
troposphere and enter the next layer,
the stratosphere. The stratosphere
begins about 11 km (7 mi) above the
surface, a bit above the top of Mount
Everest, the tallest mountain on Earth.
Although composed of essentially the
same mixture of gases as the lower
atmosphere, the stratosphere has
one important difference. In this part
of the atmosphere, oxygen absorbs
solar energy and the oxygen atoms
join together in sets of 3, which forms
This diagram shows five layers of the atmosphere. a substance called ozone. You may
The atmosphere is not drawn to scale compared to know that ozone at ground level is a
the size of Earth. If drawn to scale, the bottom four pollutant, mostly given off by cars.
layers of the atmosphere would not be any thicker However, ozone is formed naturally,
than the troposphere as shown.
and in the stratosphere it protects life
on Earth from the Sun’s ultraviolet (UV)

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 4.1 UnderstandMore to Learn
the Question

rays. Ultraviolet rays from the Sun cause

many problems, such as skin cancer. The
ozone in the high atmosphere absorbs
most of the Sun’s ultraviolet light before
it gets to Earth. Only a small amount of
ultraviolet light from the Sun reaches
Earth’s surface.
The amount of ozone in the stratosphere
is very small, only about 5 molecules
out of every million molecules of air.
Nevertheless, the ozone layer is extremely
important to living things. In Learning Set
2, you read about protecting yourself from
ultraviolet rays by using sunscreen. The
ozone in the stratosphere is a natural
sunscreen. The sunscreen you put on
your skin protects you from the small
amount of UV rays that manage to get
past the ozone layer.
The jet stream blows at the altitude that
is also along the boundary between the
troposphere and the stratosphere. When This diagram shows temperatures in each layer of
the atmosphere. Temperature decreases as altitude
the stratosphere absorbs ultraviolet light
increases in the troposphere and mesosphere, but
and other types of solar energy, this temperature increases at higher altitudes within the
energy is not available for heating the stratosphere and thermosphere.
troposphere.
As a result, the bottom of the
stratosphere is actually warmer than the top of the troposphere.
This temperature difference keeps the two layers separated because
warm air in the troposphere cannot be carried upward by convection,
since the stratosphere layer above it is already warmer than air in the
troposphere.
Mesosphere
Above the stratosphere is the coldest part of the atmosphere. Starting
at an altitude of about 50 km (35 mi), the air in the mesosphere does
not have enough density for planes to fly. It is below the level where
spacecraft or satellites can safely orbit Earth, though. Without readings
from aircraft or satellites, it is difficult to study this layer.

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 Learning Set 4 • What Other Factors Interact to Cause Weather Changes?

The mesosphere has enough air, however, that when meteors move
through it, the air creates a lot of friction with the fast-moving object.
This means most meteors burn up as they pass through this layer.
Thermosphere
The thermosphere begins at the top of the mesosphere and extends
about 500 km (310 mi) above Earth’s surface. In the thermosphere,
the air is very thin and air molecules are far apart compared with the
lower levels. Molecules in the thermosphere absorb most of the X-rays
that reach Earth from the Sun. The energy absorbed by this layer does
not reach lower layers, so this layer is much hotter than lower layers.
It reaches temperatures of 1500°C or more. The ionosphere is part of
the thermosphere. This is a part of the atmosphere in which the atoms
and molecules that make up air are ionized. The energy from the Sun is
so strong that it breaks up some of the molecules in air leaving ions and
electrons. This region of ionized air is where auroras occur. Auroras,
also called the northern and southern lights, are colorful streams of light
that appear in the sky in polar regions. This layer is important in radio
communication. Radio signals can be “bounced off” the ionosphere. This
permits radio communication over large distances.
Exosphere
The highest layer of our atmosphere is called the exosphere. In this
layer, atoms and molecules are even farther apart. Most of the
exosphere consists of hydrogen and helium. The molecules of these
gases are low in mass. As these gases absorb energy, their molecules
can move fast enough to escape Earth’s gravity. Some molecules
gradually float off into space, but most are still held by Earth’s gravity.

Stop and Think

1. In which layer of the atmosphere does weather occur?
2. In which layers of the atmosphere do local winds blow? How high
above Earth are these winds?
3. In which layers of the atmosphere do global winds blow? How high
above Earth are these winds?
4. Think about each layer of the atmosphere. How would life on Earth
be different if that layer did not exist?

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