Atmosphere Basics Webquest
Atmosphere and Heat Transfer Web Quest
Directions: Click on the link above each set questions to find the answers.
Layers of the Atmosphere
http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/earth/Atmosphere/layers.html
1. Name the five layers of the atmosphere:
a. Troposphere
b. Stratosphere
c. Mesosphere
d. Thermosphere
e. Exosphere (some scientist consider this layer to be part of space)
2. Click on the words “atmosphere” and each layer of the atmosphere to fill in the blanks below:
a. What are the two main gases found in the atmosphere?
1. Nitrogen
2. Oxygen
b. The troposphere is the lowest region of the Earth's atmosphere and is where weather occurs.
c. The stratosphere contains the ozone which absorbs ultraviolet radiation. Look at the diagram: Hot Air Balloons and Airplanes can fly in the stratosphere.
d. As you go higher in the mesosphere, the temperature becomes colder . Scientists do not know much about the mesosphere, but they do know that meteors burn up in this layer.
e. The thermosphere contains a layer of charged particles called the ionosphere which makes communication by long distance radio possible and is home to the Aurora (Northern Lights). This is the layer in which space shuttles fly.
f. In the exosphere the atmosphere is very thin as it begins to fade into space.
http://earthguide.ucsd.edu/earthguide/diagrams/atmosphere/index.html
3. Look at the diagram and click “layer Names – Show It.” List the height span of each layer:
a. Troposphere- 12 km
b. Stratosphere - 50 km
c. Mesosphere - 85 km
d. Thermosphere - 600 km
4. Click “Temperatures – Show it”. What happens to the temperature in each layer (does it get hotter or colder?)?
a. Troposphere- It gets colder
b. Stratosphere- It gets warmer
c. Mesosphere - It gets colder
d. Thermosphere - It gets warmer
Heat Transfer
http://www.wisc-online.com/objects/index_tj.asp?objID=SCE304
5. Conduction is the transfer of heat between objects that are in direct contact with each other.
6. Why does the hand need an oven mitt in order to pick up the pot from the stove? It insulates the hand to protect from the heat of the pot, which was heated by the stove
7. List four good conductors and four poor conductors:
Good Poor
1. Cooper 1. Wood
2. Silver 2. Styrofoam
3. Iron 3. Paper
4. Steel 4. Air
8. Convection is the up and down movement of gasses and liquids caused by heat transfer.
9. What happens to the air as the stove heats it? It warms, rises, and expands
11. What happens to the air as it gets farther from the heat source? It cools and sinks because it is more dense than the warm air
12. List four examples of convection:
1. Warmer water at the surface of a lake or swimming pool
2. Wind Currents
3. Hot Air Balloon
4. Lower floors of a building being colder than the top floor
13. When electromagnetic waves travel through space it is called radiation.
14. What happens to the temperature of the house as the sun’s radiant energy touches it?
It gets hotter
15. List three examples of radiation:
1. Camp fire
2. A microwave oven
3. A light bulb
Directions: Click on the link above each set questions to find the answers.
Layers of the Atmosphere
http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/earth/Atmosphere/layers.html
1. Name the five layers of the atmosphere:
a. Troposphere
b. Stratosphere
c. Mesosphere
d. Thermosphere
e. Exosphere (some scientist consider this layer to be part of space)
2. Click on the words “atmosphere” and each layer of the atmosphere to fill in the blanks below:
a. What are the two main gases found in the atmosphere?
1. Nitrogen
2. Oxygen
b. The troposphere is the lowest region of the Earth's atmosphere and is where weather occurs.
c. The stratosphere contains the ozone which absorbs ultraviolet radiation. Look at the diagram: Hot Air Balloons and Airplanes can fly in the stratosphere.
d. As you go higher in the mesosphere, the temperature becomes colder . Scientists do not know much about the mesosphere, but they do know that meteors burn up in this layer.
e. The thermosphere contains a layer of charged particles called the ionosphere which makes communication by long distance radio possible and is home to the Aurora (Northern Lights). This is the layer in which space shuttles fly.
f. In the exosphere the atmosphere is very thin as it begins to fade into space.
http://earthguide.ucsd.edu/earthguide/diagrams/atmosphere/index.html
3. Look at the diagram and click “layer Names – Show It.” List the height span of each layer:
a. Troposphere- 12 km
b. Stratosphere - 50 km
c. Mesosphere - 85 km
d. Thermosphere - 600 km
4. Click “Temperatures – Show it”. What happens to the temperature in each layer (does it get hotter or colder?)?
a. Troposphere- It gets colder
b. Stratosphere- It gets warmer
c. Mesosphere - It gets colder
d. Thermosphere - It gets warmer
Heat Transfer
http://www.wisc-online.com/objects/index_tj.asp?objID=SCE304
5. Conduction is the transfer of heat between objects that are in direct contact with each other.
6. Why does the hand need an oven mitt in order to pick up the pot from the stove? It insulates the hand to protect from the heat of the pot, which was heated by the stove
7. List four good conductors and four poor conductors:
Good Poor
1. Cooper 1. Wood
2. Silver 2. Styrofoam
3. Iron 3. Paper
4. Steel 4. Air
8. Convection is the up and down movement of gasses and liquids caused by heat transfer.
9. What happens to the air as the stove heats it? It warms, rises, and expands
11. What happens to the air as it gets farther from the heat source? It cools and sinks because it is more dense than the warm air
12. List four examples of convection:
1. Warmer water at the surface of a lake or swimming pool
2. Wind Currents
3. Hot Air Balloon
4. Lower floors of a building being colder than the top floor
13. When electromagnetic waves travel through space it is called radiation.
14. What happens to the temperature of the house as the sun’s radiant energy touches it?
It gets hotter
15. List three examples of radiation:
1. Camp fire
2. A microwave oven
3. A light bulb
Atmosphere Notes
Atmosphere- combination of gases, dust, water droplets, and ice crystals. Surrounds the Earth, extends from the Earth's surface to outer space. Earth's atmosphere consists mainly of Nitrogen (78%) and Oxygen (21%) . The rest is in very trace amounts. The amounts of Nitrogen and Oxygen in the atmosphere are fairly constant over recent time. The concentrations of some atmospheric gases are not as constant over time. The amount of water vapor, ozone, and carbon dioxide vary significantly from place to place.
During the past 150 years the concentration of atmospheric carbon dioxide has increases due primarily to the burning of fossil fuels. Ozone plays important role in blocking out harmful rays from the sun. Concentration has decreases due to CFCS being banned. Scientists estimate it should fully recover by 2100
Atmospheric particles contains variable amounts of solids in the form of tiny particles such as dust, salt, and ice. Fungi and bacteria are often attached to these particles
Troposphere- closest to the Earth's surface, contains most of the atmosphere's mass, weather occurs in this layer, air temp. decreases with altitude, top is called tropopause
Stratosphere- Above tropopause, contains the ozone layer, air temp. increases with altitude since the ozone layer absorbs the sun's energy, ends at the stratopause
Mesosphere- Above the stratopause, air temp. decreases with altitude since very little solar radiation is absorbs, where meteorites burn up, ends at mesopause
Thermosphere- Low air density so temp. rises (can be over 1000 degress C) Contains the ionosphere (made up of charged particles- makes the Northern and Southern Lights)
Thermopause- ...........
Exosphere- Outermost layer, transitional region between the Earth's atmosphere and outer space
Heat is the transfer of thermal energy from regions of higher temp. to regions of lower temp. Tranferred by: radiation, conduction, convections
Radiation- transfer of thermal energy by electromagnetic waves. Thermal energy is transferrd from Sun to Earth by radiation
Conduction- transfer of thermal energy when objects at two different temps. are in contact. Occurs between the Earth's surface and lowest part of the atmosphere
Convection- transfer of thermal energy by the movement of heated material from one place to the other
During the past 150 years the concentration of atmospheric carbon dioxide has increases due primarily to the burning of fossil fuels. Ozone plays important role in blocking out harmful rays from the sun. Concentration has decreases due to CFCS being banned. Scientists estimate it should fully recover by 2100
Atmospheric particles contains variable amounts of solids in the form of tiny particles such as dust, salt, and ice. Fungi and bacteria are often attached to these particles
Troposphere- closest to the Earth's surface, contains most of the atmosphere's mass, weather occurs in this layer, air temp. decreases with altitude, top is called tropopause
Stratosphere- Above tropopause, contains the ozone layer, air temp. increases with altitude since the ozone layer absorbs the sun's energy, ends at the stratopause
Mesosphere- Above the stratopause, air temp. decreases with altitude since very little solar radiation is absorbs, where meteorites burn up, ends at mesopause
Thermosphere- Low air density so temp. rises (can be over 1000 degress C) Contains the ionosphere (made up of charged particles- makes the Northern and Southern Lights)
Thermopause- ...........
Exosphere- Outermost layer, transitional region between the Earth's atmosphere and outer space
Heat is the transfer of thermal energy from regions of higher temp. to regions of lower temp. Tranferred by: radiation, conduction, convections
Radiation- transfer of thermal energy by electromagnetic waves. Thermal energy is transferrd from Sun to Earth by radiation
Conduction- transfer of thermal energy when objects at two different temps. are in contact. Occurs between the Earth's surface and lowest part of the atmosphere
Convection- transfer of thermal energy by the movement of heated material from one place to the other
State and Moisture of the Atmosphere
Temperature- different from heat. Measures the average speed of the particles of a substance. Temperature scales- Fahrenheit, Celsius, and Kelvins. Dew Point- point where condensation can occur- depends on water content in the air. Vertical temp. changes- air cools as elevation increases . Dry air cools at about 10 C / 1000 m. If you travel high enough, the air cools to the dew point. This is called lifted condensation level (LCL). Moist air cools at about 6 C/ 1000 m. (Hot air cools faster than cool)
Pressure- Air pressure and density. The air near the Earth's surface is denser than the air further up. The higher you go, the lower the pressure because of gravity and less molecules are above you to weigh down. As the temp. goes up, the pressure goes up. This is called a direct relationship. As the temp. goes up, the density goes down, this is called an inverse relationship.
Wind- Results from differences in temp.. Warm air has a lower density and rises causing low pressure. Cooler air has a higher density and falls, causing high pressure.
Relative Humidity- Depends on how much moisture is in the air and how much moisture could be in the air. Warm air holds more moisture. If the relative humidity is 100% this means the atmosphere is fully saturated.
Cloud Formation- Steps to making clouds
1. Warm, moist air rises.
2. This air expands and cools.
3. The air reaches its dew point
4. Water droplets condense around condensation nuclei
Surface on which water droplets can form. Smoke or dust particles can act as condensation nuclei.
5. CLOUDS
Causes for warm air to rise- Orographic lifting- cloud formation as a result of wind moving air into a mountain. This moves the air upwards. Happens in the Smoky Mountains.
Warm air encounters cold air is another way. Atmospheric stability- a stable atmosphere has no clouds, or thin layer of clouds. An unstable atmosphere will have vertical development. Thunderstorms indicate an unstable atmosphere. Latent heat- energy required to evaporate water is stored in the water vapor.
Types of Clouds
High in the atmosphere- Cirro
Middle of the atmosphere- Alto
Lower atmosphere- Strato
Shape
Wispy, hair- Cirrus
Lumpy, puffy- Cumulus
Layer, featureless- Stratus
Low , gray rain clouds- Nimbus
Pressure- Air pressure and density. The air near the Earth's surface is denser than the air further up. The higher you go, the lower the pressure because of gravity and less molecules are above you to weigh down. As the temp. goes up, the pressure goes up. This is called a direct relationship. As the temp. goes up, the density goes down, this is called an inverse relationship.
Wind- Results from differences in temp.. Warm air has a lower density and rises causing low pressure. Cooler air has a higher density and falls, causing high pressure.
Relative Humidity- Depends on how much moisture is in the air and how much moisture could be in the air. Warm air holds more moisture. If the relative humidity is 100% this means the atmosphere is fully saturated.
Cloud Formation- Steps to making clouds
1. Warm, moist air rises.
2. This air expands and cools.
3. The air reaches its dew point
4. Water droplets condense around condensation nuclei
Surface on which water droplets can form. Smoke or dust particles can act as condensation nuclei.
5. CLOUDS
Causes for warm air to rise- Orographic lifting- cloud formation as a result of wind moving air into a mountain. This moves the air upwards. Happens in the Smoky Mountains.
Warm air encounters cold air is another way. Atmospheric stability- a stable atmosphere has no clouds, or thin layer of clouds. An unstable atmosphere will have vertical development. Thunderstorms indicate an unstable atmosphere. Latent heat- energy required to evaporate water is stored in the water vapor.
Types of Clouds
High in the atmosphere- Cirro
Middle of the atmosphere- Alto
Lower atmosphere- Strato
Shape
Wispy, hair- Cirrus
Lumpy, puffy- Cumulus
Layer, featureless- Stratus
Low , gray rain clouds- Nimbus