1. Weather and Atmosphere
Chapter 26
Weather and Atmosphere

2. Topics for Today Meteorology Weather Atmosphere
Four Important Characteristics
Temperature
Composition
Pressure
Function

3. Meteorology Meteorology
A study of the entire atmosphere including its weather
Meteorologist
The “weatherman” daily weather data and short-term weather forecasting
Doppler Radar to predict precipitation, wind direction or storm tracks.
Interprets National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration data
Publicizes National Weather Service alerts and warnings: storms, floods, fire threats
Physical Meteorology: A study of the Physical and Chemical properties of the atmosphere
Composition, pressure and movement
Energy content, transfer and balance
Factors affecting the formation of clouds, rain, and snow
Dispersal of air pollutants over urban areas
Phenomena such as the mechanics of thunderstorms and lightning
Synoptic Meteorology: Weather Patterns
study large-scale (regional to global scale) weather systems using computers and sophisticated models of atmospheric activity.
Global Winds, Jet Stream
Weather Patterns – El Nino
Very Large Storm systems like Hurricanes and Super cells

4. Weather Weather Weather is a combination of…
Weather is the state of atmosphere at a given time and place
Weather is a combination of…
current temperature
humidity
precipitation
cloudiness
visibility
wind
pressure

5. Thickness of the Atmosphere
Scale: atm/RE = Sheets/Ream (70mi / 4000mi = “x” / 500)

6. Patterns in… Temperature (26.3 pg 481) Troposphere Stratosphere
Mesosphere
Thermosphere

8. Patterns in… Composition Homogeneous Heterogeneous
Troposphere to Mesosphere
Heterogeneous
Upper Layers

9. Composition: Important Gases
Homogeneous Lower (mixed)
Heterogeneous Upper (layers by density)
Troposphere (diatomic gases)
N2 78%
O2 21%
Ar Less Than 1%
CO2 0.03%
Water Vapor 0 to 2%
Stratosphere
N2 and O2
Ozone (O3) layer (created when O2 absorbs UV)
Mesosphere
Thermosphere (monatomic gases) O N He H
Exosphere
He layer
H layer

10. Layers By Mass: Mixed: Nitrogen And Oxygen
O, N, He, H
Mixed:
Nitrogen
And Oxygen
Ozone: 2-8 parts per million
Water Vapor, Argon
and Carbon Dioxide

11. Patterns in… Density 50% within 3 miles 99.9% within 30 miles
Pressure is 2x less
99.9% within 30 miles
Pressure is 1000x less

12. Pressure: Distribution of Mass

13. Pressure Ideas about the “edge of the atmosphere”
The Karman Line – air is too thin to support aeronautical flight. Air is so thin that aircraft have to fly so fast to obtain lift that they could leave orbit

14. Functions
Warm the Earth
Protect the Earth
Ozone Layer
Ionosphere

15. Function: Warms the Earth

16. Function: Ozone Layer

17. Function: Ionosphere

18. Function: Protects the Earth

19. The Atmosphere is a System with many Interacting Factors

21. Summary Weather Meteorology Four Ways to Describe the Atmosphere
Temperature
Composition
Pressure
Function