What is the temperature of the atmosphere? Tom, Burwash School

3/25/2015

Keita Lynch link

3/28/2015 07:31:46 am

My favourite kind of question is one that has more than one answer. Yours happens to be just that.

The atmosphere is actually lots of different temperatures… but how does that work? You may have learned already that the Earth has different layers, just like a huge gobstopper. Well, get this… the atmosphere has layers, too! They're just made out of gases, instead of solids and liquids.

Each of the layers have different temperatures within them. It makes sense to think that the higher you go, the colder it is; because when you hear about people climbing really big mountains, it's always very cold. Well this is true within the first layer of the atmosphere, but higher up it's a different story.

Imagine you are in your very own rocket, taking off from Earth. In order to reach space, you'll have to travel through all four primary layers of the atmosphere.

At the launch pad you'll be in the troposphere. Because it is the layer of the atmosphere closest to the Earth, it gets nice and warm near the bottom from the planet's heat. This is the first layer and the one you're breathing in right now.

As you take off and get higher into the sky, outside of your rocket it will be getting colder and colder - just like high up on a mountain. Up here is where all our weather happens, like thunderstorms and snow. After just over 10 miles up you'll pass above the clouds and past the height that aeroplanes fly at. It's about -50°C now… pretty chilly!

It stays cold until you reach the next layer - the stratosphere. You might pass a weather balloon, because this is where they hang out. At about 15 miles up, you'll start to go through an area made of ozone - my favourite part. The ozone protects us on Earth from the Sun's UV radiation. This protective blanket means that the higher you get in the stratosphere, the hotter it gets. This is because ozone is really good at absorbing light from the Sun - just like your duvet is good at keeping you warm.

At nearly 30 miles from the Earth's surface, it goes back up to 0°C - cold compared to what we're used to at home, but pretty hot stuff for way up here! It'll stay this temperature for about 5 miles, but then you'll hit the super chilly layer called the mesosphere. 35 miles from Earth, this layer has no ozone to absorb light to make it warm, so temperatures drop. Zooming further and further up, you're at nearly 40 miles from Earth and it's -100°C… yikes! The mesosphere is also where lots of meteors that are heading for Earth burn up, so keep an eye out for shooting stars.

Further up still at 50 miles, you'll reach the last layer - the thermosphere. This one's quite exciting for a few reasons. Firstly, it's where the northern and southern lights happen. A bit higher at around 200 miles is where the International Space Station orbits the Earth - don't forget to wave 'hello'! In the outer edge of the thermosphere is also where you'll find our GPS satellites that help Sat Navs in cars tell us where to go.

The air up this high isn't very thick at all. This means the oxygen molecules get heated up by the Sun really easily - sometimes reaching 2000°C… yowch! This is the hottest part of the atmosphere, but if you were able to stick your arm out of your rocket, it wouldn't feel hot. How weird is that?! This is because the hot oxygen molecules are extremely far apart from one another, so you'd hardly come into contact with any of them.

OK you're pretty much in space now, so perhaps go check out the Moon but make sure you come back down to Earth!

Why not try making a colourful diagram to show where each of the atmospheric layers are? This video is worth taking a look at too if you'd like to learn more:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WaikvaAw2nk

Stay curious!

VID 1: Do you love your job?

VID 2: Can you come to my party?

VID 3: What is your favourite experiment?

Our team of Scientists...

Lydia Samuel
As Director of Blast Science and a Primary Science Teacher for more than 15 years, Lydia has answered unending questions about Science from hundreds of children for over a decade and has a wealth of Primary Science classroom experience. She has a particular passion for Wizard Science, Chocolate Science and all things Gross!

Tom Holloway
is a Primary Science Teacher and Space Enthusiast. Alongside being a full time teacher he runs Star Gazing evenings, is a Science Advisor, has established a Darwin Garden in his school in Caterham and won Primary Science Teacher of the Year in 2013/14. Watch the video here!

Steve Evans
has recently joined Blast Science as a performer after working for several years at Herstmonceux Observatory. He knows a huge amount about physics, chemistry, space and.... Star Wars! So can answer all your intergalactic questions..

Keita Lynch
has helped Sussex 'stay curious' by coordinating the Brighton Science Festival for three years. She's passionate about sharing science in simple
and engaging ways; without all the big words.
Keita's also a keen supporter of campaigns
like Let Toys Be Toys that encourage toy makers and retailers to stop limiting children's imagination by branding things for 'girls' or 'boys'. Astronaut suits and dinosaurs for all!

Dr Sarah Newnham
I am 26 and have a degree and PhD in biochemistry. I enjoy learning new things and have spent 7 years at university studying and experimenting with molecules and microorganisms. I mainly like to play with bacteria and get them to do new things and produce different chemicals. I also enjoy helping with Science projects in schools and enthusing children about my subject.

Dr Matt Edwards
Dr Matt decided to become a doctor when he ran out of his own scabs to pick. He used to work in Accident and Emergency in Brighton, pulling broken bones back into place and sewing up cuts. He now works in Brisbane, Australia as a Family doctor. This involves cutting out lots of funny lumps and sticking his fingers in every hole that people have. In his time he has been covered in every body juice you can think of, and once juggled with three hearts. Ask him anything about bodies and Gross Science.

Jonathan Brown
(Engineer at Ricardo) Had a strange fascination with all things mechanical from an early age and would often spend time 'fixing' his Dad's car without telling his Dad first. Rarely did it end happily, so of course he decided to continue this into a career than now spans almost 2 decades of designing engines for big names the world over. Having studied Mechanical Engineering at university he has been working since at a world leading technology consultancy, principally creating models and simulations of engines big and small for everyone from McLaren to Volvo. These days you're as likely to find him on a ship or looking at a tidal turbine, but it's still engines that keep him running.

Ivan Teage
Ivan is a experienced all-round scientist. He studied astrophysics after a childhood of being obsessed with going to the moon, and now works at the Natural History Museum in London using technology to explain Science to young and old audiences. Ivan is interested in the science of music and is keen to help people understand the natural world, how it works, and what it has to offer. He is looking forward to your questions about nature, space, music, sound & the meaning of life.

Alex Nicholls
With A-levels in Pure Maths, Applied Maths, Physics and Chemistry he went to Uni to read Nuclear Physics, but in the end switched to Law. He nevertheless retained a great interest in Science and has an encyclopedic general knowledge about nearly everything. Alex is also the linchpin of the Blast Science props dept but helps out answering complicated questions about Science for light relief from complicated carpentry.