1. Layers of the Atmosphere
Meteorology
Layers of the Atmosphere

2. Meteorology
Meteorology is …

3. Meteorology Meteorology is the branch of science
that deals with the atmosphere of
a planet, particularly that of the
Earth, the most important application of which is the analysis and prediction
of weather.

4. Kid definition Meteorology is the study of the
atmosphere to analyze and predict
the weather.

5. Background Info
Although the density of air decreases with the increasing altitude, that is, the air gets “thinner”, the proportions of gases in the air remain relatively the same, at least in the lower layers. Water vapor is found in the atmosphere, but its concentration varies with weather and climate conditions. For example, air is generally dry over the southwestern states but relatively wet over the southeastern region, which includes the Florida Keys.
Top Ten Gases in Our Atmosphere

6. What are the layers of the atmosphere and how do they interact?
Detailed Look at Each 4mins.)

7. Layers of the Earth’s Atmosphere

8. Troposphere
O to 12 km (about 7.5 miles)
tropo means -

9. Troposphere
O to 12 km
tropo means – “turning” or “changing”
___ km above the equator or less than __ km above Poles

10. Troposphere
O to 12 km
tropo means – “turning” or “changing”
12 km above the equator or less than 9 km above Poles
At the top of this layer temperature stays ___ °C

11. Troposphere
O to 12 km
tropo means – “turning” or “changing”
12 km above the equator or less than 9 km above Poles. It is made mostly of the gases nitrogen and oxygen.
At the top of this layer temperature stays -60 °C
Water here forms ______, feathery clouds of _____

12. Troposphere
O to 12 km
tropo means – “turning” or “changing”
12 km above the equator or less than 9 km above Poles
At the top of this layer temperature stays -60 °C
Water here forms _thin_, feathery clouds of _ice_
______, _______, _______ & ______ ______ occur in this layer

13. Troposphere
O to 12 km
tropo means – “turning” or “changing”
12 km above the equator or less than 9 km above Poles
At the top of this layer temperature stays -60 °C
Water here forms _thin_, feathery clouds of _ice_
_Rain_, _snow__, & _most_ _clouds_ occur in this layer
The Troposphere is important because…

14. Troposphere
O to 12 km
tropo means – “turning” or “changing”
12 km above the equator or less than 9 km above Poles
At the top of this layer temperature stays -60 °C
Water here forms _thin_, feathery clouds of _ice_
_Rain_, _snow__, & _most_ _clouds_ occur in this layer
The Troposphere is important because… weather occurs in this layer. Weather is important because it starts the water cycle.

15. Stratosphere
___ to ___ km (7.5 – 31 miles)
strato-

16. Stratosphere
12 to 50 km (about 7.5 miles – 31 miles)
strato- “layer” or “spread out”

17. Stratosphere
12 to 50 km
strato- “layer” or “spread out”
The _____ stratosphere is warmer(-20C/-68F) than the lower stratosphere (-60C/-76F)
Where troposphere and stratosphere meet is the jet stream, a current of fast-moving air. In our country, the jet stream blows from west to east. It tends to push our weather in that direction.

18. Stratosphere
12 to 50 km
strato- “layer” or “spread out”
The _upper_ stratosphere is warmer(-20C/68F) than the lower stratosphere (-60C/ -76F)
________is in the middle portion of the stratosphere

19. Stratosphere
12 to 50 km
strato- “layer” or “spread out”
The upper stratosphere is warmer(-20C/-68F) than the lower stratosphere (-60C/-76F)
_Ozone_is in the middle portion of the stratosphere

20. Stratosphere
12 to 50 km
strato- “layer” or “spread out”
The _upper_ stratosphere is warmer than the lower stratosphere
_Ozone is in the middle portion of the stratosphere
The ______ _______ protects Earth’s living things from ____________ ______________ from sun.

21. Stratosphere
12 to 50 km
strato- “layer” or “spread out”
The _upper_ stratosphere is warmer than the lower stratosphere
_Ozone_ is in the middle portion of the stratosphere. Ozone is a form of oxygen found in the atmosphere.
The _ozone_layer_ protects Earth’s living things from
ultraviolet radiation_ from sun. Some say there is a hole in our ozone layer. It is not exactly a hole but a thinning of the ozone layer where it is in low concentrations.
Felix Baumgartner's fall from space

22. Mesosphere
___ to ___ km (31-50 miles)

23. Mesosphere
_50_ to _80_ km
meso - means “__________”

24. Mesosphere
_50_ to _80_ km
meso - means “_middle_”

25. Mesosphere
_50_ to _80_ km
meso - means “_middle_”
Most ______ burn up in the __________, producing ___________ __________.

26. Mesosphere
_50_ to _80_ km
meso - means “_middle_”
Most _meteoroids_ burn up in the _mesosphere_, producing _meteor_ _trails_.
Molecules in the air spread _________ apart.

27. Mesosphere
_50_ to _80_ km
meso - means “_middle_”
Most _meteoroids_ burn up in the _mesosphere_, producing _meteor_ _trails_.
Molecules in the air spread _________ apart.

28. Mesosphere
_50_ to _80_ km
meso - means “_middle_”
Most _meteoroids_ burn up in the _mesosphere_, producing _meteor_ _trails_.
Molecules in the air spread _farther_ apart.
Temperatures approach ____⁰C

29. Mesosphere
_50_ to _80_ km
meso - means “_middle_”
Most _meteoroids_ burn up in the _mesosphere_, producing _meteor_ _trails_.
Molecules in the air spread _farther_ apart.
Temperatures approach _-90_⁰C

30. Mesosphere
_50_ to _80_ km
meso - means “_middle_”
Most _meteoroids_ burn up in the _mesosphere_, producing _meteor_ _trails_.
Molecules in the air spread _farther_ apart.
Temperatures approach _-90_⁰C
Important in the atmosphere because…

31. Mesosphere
_50_ to _80_ km
meso - means “_middle_”
Most _meteoroids_ burn up in the _mesosphere_, producing _meteor_ _trails_.
Molecules in the air spread _farther_ apart.
Temperatures approach _-90_⁰C
Important in the atmosphere because…
It protects Earth’s surface from being hit by most _________________.

32. Mesosphere
_50_ to _80_ km
meso - means “_middle_”
Most _meteoroids_ burn up in the _mesosphere_, producing _meteor_ _trails_.
Molecules in the air spread _farther_ apart.
Temperatures approach _-90_⁰C
Important in the atmosphere because…
It protects Earth’s surface from being hit by most _meteoroids_ .

33. Thermosphere
above __ km

34. Thermosphere
above _80_ km
This layer extends from ____ km above Earth’s surface outward into space.

35. Thermosphere
above _80_ km
This layer extends from _80_ km above Earth’s surface outward into space.
It has ___ _____________ outer limit.

36. Thermosphere
above _80_ km
This layer extends from _80_ km above Earth’s surface outward into space.
It has _no_ _definite_ outer limit.
This layer can reach temperatures of _______⁰C.

37. Thermosphere
above _80_ km
This layer extends from _80_ km above Earth’s surface outward into space.
It has _no_ _definite_ outer limit.
This layer can reach temperatures of _1, _⁰C. (about 3200F)
Despite the high temperatures, you would ____ feel warm.

38. Thermosphere
above _80_ km
This layer extends from _80_ km above Earth’s surface outward into space.
It has _no_ _definite_ outer limit.
This layer can reach temperatures of _1,800_⁰C.
Despite the high temperatures you would _NOT_ feel warm.
Important in the atmosphere because…

39. Thermosphere
above _80_ km
This layer extends from _80_ km above Earth’s surface outward into space.
It has _no_ _definite_ outer limit.
This layer can reach temperatures of _1,800_⁰C.
Despite the high temperatures you would _NOT_ feel warm.
Important in the atmosphere because…
The ___________ extends out into _______ _________ .
We view the _________ ________ or aurora borealis.

40. Thermosphere
above _80_ km
This layer extends from _80_ km above Earth’s surface outward into space.
It has _no_ _definite_ outer limit.
This layer can reach temperatures of _1,800_ ⁰C.
Despite the high temperatures you would _NOT_ feel warm.
Important in the atmosphere because…
The _thermosphere_ extends out into _outer_ _space_ Many satellites orbit here. .
We view the _Northern_ _Lights_ or Aurora Borealis, which are magnetic particles located in the thermosphere.

41. Aurora Borealis What causes the Northern Lights?
Aurora over Hancock, MI looking north, July 25, 2004, 2:18am Photos by Claudia Perko
From

42. Thermosphere (continued)
This layer is divided into two sub-layers.
The lower layer is called the ionosphere.
About 80 to 400 km above Earth’s surface
Northern Lights are located in this layer
The upper layer is called the exosphere.
About 400 km outward for thousands of km

43. Wrap Up on Atmosphere Mr. Parr's Layers of Atmosphere Song
Tornadoes sometimes make trouble in eastern states
Create your own mnemonic sentence and share it.

44. Summarizer
NASA The Structure of our atmosphere

45. Part Two What makes the wind blow?
Mr. Wizard Demo 1 Where does wind come from?

46. Atmospheric Circulation
Atmospheric circulation on planets

47. Global Winds Little Shop of Science - global circulation
Global winds are the result of uneven heating. The air over the equator is warmer than the air over the poles. As a result, the hot air over the equator rises, and the cold air from the poles slips in under it. Global winds are curved by the Earth’s rotation. The direction of the earth’s rotation and its wind patterns is shown.

48. The Coriolis Effect
The rotation of the Earth causes and interesting phenomena on free-moving objects on Earth. Objects in the Northern Hemisphere are deflected to the right while objects in the Southern Hemisphere are deflected to the left.
Will a toilet flush opposite in Australia?

49. Jet Stream
How does our jet stream work?

50. High and Low Pressure high and low pressure convection clip
The air’s density can help you predict the weather. Scientists determine how many particles are in the air by measuring how heavy the air is. Air with more particles in it is heavier than air with less particles. The weight of this air is always pushing on us and is known as air pressure. Since cold air is more dense than warm air it is heavier and greater air pressure and forms high pressure areas. Warm air is less dense and forms low pressure areas.

51. Air Pressure Air Pressure Demo
air pressure vs altitude
Egg in a bottle
Mr. Wizard Demo
Exploration with air pressure

52. Local Winds Land and Sea Breezes Explained

53. Sea Breeze and Land Breeze Animation of Sea and Land Breezes – Illustrate your own examples

54. What are air masses? Air Masses - An Introduction TWC - air masses and fronts

55. Fronts
Hot air and cold air mass demo

56. How to read a weather map