Meteorology Lec 1 - Atmosphere

Atmosphere

Life-giving blanket of air surrounding Earth that protects from UV radiation and space debris

Meteorology

Study of atmospheric phenomena including weather and climate

Cartesian Coordinates

Local x-y-z system used for small-scale meteorological measurements

Polar Coordinates

Wind measurement system using direction (α) and magnitude (M)

Meridians

North-south lines measuring longitude from 0° (Prime) to 180°

Parallels

East-west lines measuring latitude from 0° (Equator) to 90° (Poles)

Zenith Angle

Angle between vertical line and direction to an object

Elevation Angle

Complementary to zenith angle (90° - ζ) measuring object height

UTC

Coordinated Universal Time based on Prime Meridian (GMT/Zulu time)

Permanent Gases

Nitrogen (78%), Oxygen (21%), Argon (0.9%) in dry air

Variable Gases

Water vapor (0-4%), CO₂ (0.04%), O₃, particles in atmosphere

Nitrogen Cycle

Biological processes converting N₂ between air, soil, and organisms

Water Vapor

Most variable greenhouse gas driving weather and energy transfer

CO₂

Greenhouse gas increasing from 315 to 420 ppm since 1958

Ozone Layer

Stratospheric O₃ absorbing UV-C radiation at 11-50km altitude

CFCs

Chlorofluorocarbons destroying ozone while being potent greenhouse gases

Air Density

Mass per volume (1.225 kg/m³ at sea level) decreasing with altitude

Air Pressure

Force per area (1013.25 hPa at sea level) from overlying air mass

Troposphere

Lowest layer (0-11km) with weather and decreasing temperature

Lapse Rate

Temperature decrease with height (6.5°C/km average in troposphere)

Tropopause

Boundary where temperature stops decreasing (≈-60°C at 11km)

Stratosphere

Layer (11-50km) with ozone heating causing temperature inversion

Mesosphere

Layer (50-85km) with coldest temperatures (-90°C)

Thermosphere

Layer (85-500km) with sparse molecules but high temperatures

Homosphere

Well-mixed lower atmosphere (0-80km) with uniform composition

Heterosphere

Upper atmosphere where gases separate by molecular weight

Ionosphere

Electrified region (60

Radiosonde

Instrument package measuring vertical atmospheric profiles

Weather

Atmospheric conditions at specific time/place including temperature, wind, precipitation

Climate

Long-term (30

Satellite Imagery

Remote sensing of weather systems using visible/IR wavelengths

Meteorological Applications

Weather forecasting for agriculture, health, transportation, disaster managemen