Earth week 9

chapter 13

troposphere

bottom-most layer(0-10km) air for breath, temp decline with altitude

tropopause

limits mixing between troposphere and the layer above it

stratosphere

(11-50km) drier and less dense, contains UV radiation blocking ozone

mesosphere

50-80 km extreme low air pressure temp decrease with altitude

thermosphere

atmosphere top layer extends to 500 km

atmospheric pressure

measures the force per unit area produced by a column of air

convective circulation

less dense, warmer air rises and created vertical currents,

weather

specifies atmospheric conditions over short time periods within small geographic areas

climate

describes patterns of atmospheric conditions across large geographic regions over long periods of time

warm front

the boundary where warm air replaces cold air

cold front

the boundary where colder drier air displaces warm moist air

high pressure system

air that moves away from a center of high pressure as it descends

low pressure system

air moves toward the low atmospheric pressure at the center of the system and spirals upward

thermal inversion

a layer of cool air occurs beneath a layer of warmer air

inversion layer

the band of air in which temp rises with altitude

hadley cells

a pair of convective air currents near the equator where surface air warms rises and expands

ferrel and polar cells

convective cells that lift air and create precipitation at 60 degrees latitude

Coriolis effect

the north-south air currents of the convective cells appear to be deflected from straight path

dust storms

hundreds of millions of tons of dust blown west across the Atlantic ocean by trade winds

aerosols

fine droplets formed when Sulphur dioxide reacts with water/ oxygen and condenses

secondary pollutants

form when primary pollutants interact or react with constituents or components of the atmosphere

persistent organic pollutants

can last in the environment for long periods of time they are volatile

scrubbers

technologies that chemically convert r physically remove pollutants before they leave the smokestack

industrial smog

is from burning coil or oil specifically

ozone layer

ozone in the lower stratosphere 12ppm concentrations effectively block uv radiation

chlorofluorocarbons CFCs

chemicals that attack ozone