Atmosphere, Weather, and Climate

1
Atmosphere, Weather, and Climate
2
Composition of the atmosphere

• The atmosphere is primarily composed of Nitrogen
  (N2, 78)
• Oxygen (O2, 21)
• Argon (Ar, 1).
•  A myriad of other very influential components
  are also present
• water (H2O, 0 - 7)
• "greenhouse" gases or Ozone (0 - 0.01)

   Carbon Dioxide (CO2, 0.01-0.1),
3
Upper Layers of the Atmosphere
4
Exosphere

• Blends into outer space.
• Space shuttle orbits here.
• Hydrogen and Helium are the prime components and
  are only present at extremely low densities.

5
Layers of the Atmosphere
6
Thermosphere

• The Earth's thermosphere is the layer of the
  atmosphere which is first exposed to the Sun's
  radiation and so is first heated by the Sun. The
  air is so thin that a small increase in energy
  can cause a large increase in temperature.
• Ionosphere A layer of electrically charged
  particles within the thermosphere.

7
Mesosphere

• Extends from the top of the stratosphere to about
  85 km above Earth.

8
Lower Levels of the Atmosphere
9
Stratosphere

• The layer directly above the troposphere extends
  10km about 50km above Earths surface.
• Ozone Layer within the stratosphere
• Made of oxygen
• Oxygen you breathe has two atoms per molecule O
• Ozone molecule is made up of three oxygen
  molecules bound together O
• Shields from suns harmful energy
• Absorbs most of the harmful ultraviolet radiation
  

2
3
10
CFCs

• Chlorofluorocarbons A group of chemical
  compounds used in refrigerators, air
  conditioners, aerosol sprays, and foam packaging.
• Destroy Ozone
• View Video

11
Ozone Holes

• What role does ozone play in the atmosphere?
• What methods were used to study the atmosphere?
  Where were the studies done and why were they
  done there?
• Why do you think scientists around the world
  assumed the satellite data was incorrect?
• What is the status of the ozone hole today?
• Scientists in this video conducted their research
  under extreme conditions. What character traits
  did these scientists possess that allowed them to
  be successful? If you were planning a scientific
  expedition to Antarctica, what preparations would
  need to be made? How would you need to adjust
  physically and emotionally to these extreme
  conditions?

12
View Video

• Questions

13
The forms of energy that are most important in
geologic processes are

• Kinetic Energy (meteorite impact, movement of
  wind and water, ocean currents)
• Gravitational Potential Energy (falling rain
  gains kinetic energy from its gravitational
  potential, water flowing down from mountains)
• Thermal Energy (input from the sun, radioactive
  decay, molten rocks).  Transmitted by conduction,
  convection, radiation
• Chemical Energy (holds together atoms in
  molecules, the energy of the chemical bond)
• Nuclear Energy (released during radioactive
  decay)

14
Solar Energy Transfer

• Radiation
• Conduction
• Convection

15
Convection

• The transfer of heat by the flow of a heated
  material in a liquid or gas.

Convective motions in the atmosphere are
responsible for the redistribution of heat from
the warm equatorial regions to higher latitudes
and from the surface upward.
16
Conduction

• Conduction is the process by which heat energy is
  transmitted through contact with neighboring
  molecules.
• The molecules bump into each other.

17
Radiation

• Radiation is the transfer of heat energy without
  the involvement of a physical substance in the
  transmission.
• Radiation can transmit heat through a vacuum.

18
15 Absorbed by the atmosphere
6 reflected by the atmosphere
25 reflected by clouds
Energy Transfer
4 reflected from Earths surface
50 directly or indirectly absorbed by Earths
Surface

• 35 of incoming solar radiation is reflected back
  into space.

19
Heat Absorption

• As heat energy reaches an object, it can be
  absorbed, in a similar manner to the way sponges
  absorb water. Heat enters an object, warming it.
  The longer the object is exposed to the heat
  source, the more heat that it absorbs.

20
Heat Reflection

• Reflection is the opposite of absorption. Instead
  of being absorbed, some of the heat energy is
  bounced, or reflected off in the opposite
  direction. As this happens, the heat waves are
  unchanged, as is the object itself.

21
    Scattering

• Scattering of electromagnetic energy takes place
  when the waves of light, heat, and ultraviolet
  radiation interact with the particulates found in
  the atmosphere and water. These particulates
  might be in the form of dust, gases such as
  water, or pollution.

22

• Energy travels from the sun to the earth by means
  of electromagnetic waves. The shorter the
  wavelength, the higher the energy associated with
  it. This is demonstrated in the animation below.
  As the drill's revolutions per minute (RPMs)
  increase, the number of waves generated on the
  string increases, as does the oscillation rate.
  The same principle applies to electromagnetic
  waves from the sun, where shorter wavelength
  radiation has higher energy than longer
  wavelength radiation.

23
The Water Cycle
Hydrosphere is a term that describes all the
water on Earths surface.
Water moves constantly between the atmosphere and
the hydrosphere in the water cycle.
24
(No Transcript)
25
Evaporation
Evaporation is when the sun heats up water in
rivers or lakes or the ocean and turns it into
vapor or steam. The water vapor or steam leaves
the river, lake or ocean and goes into the air.
26
Do plants sweat?

• People perspire (sweat) and plants transpire
• Transpiration is the process by which plants lose
  water out of their leaves. 

27
Condensation 

• Water vapor in the air gets cold and changes back
  into liquid, forming clouds.

28
Collection

• When water falls back to earth as precipitation,
  it may fall back in the oceans, lakes or rivers
  or it may end up on land. 
• When it ends up on land, it will either
• soak into the earth and become part of the
  ground water that plants and animals use to
  drink
• or it may run over the soil and collect in the
  oceans, lakes or rivers where the cycle starts
• all over again.

29
Precipitation

• Precipitation occurs when so much water has
  condensed that the air cannot hold it anymore. 
  The clouds get heavy and water falls back to the
  earth in the form of rain, hail, sleet or snow.

30
Air Movement

• Wind forms when air in an area of high pressure
  moves to an area of lower pressure.
• Molecules that are more densely packed are at
  higher pressure.
• Molecules that are less densely packed are at
  lower pressure.

31
Suns Radiation

• Different areas of Earth receive different
  amounts of radiation.
• The equators warm air, being less dense, is
  pushed upward by denser, colder air.
• The poles cold air, being more dense, sinks and
  moves along Earths surface.

32
The Coriolis Effect

• Rotation of the Earth causes moving air and water
  to change direction to the right north of the
  equator and left south of the equator.
• Demonstration of the Coriolis Effect
• Coriolis Force

33
Global Winds

• Wind patterns, caused by convection currents
  combined with the Coriolis effect, of Earth
  effect the worlds weather.
• Near the equator, very little wind and daily rain
  patterns called the doldrums.

34
Doldrums

• doldrums (dol'drumz) or equatorial belt of calms,
  area around the earth centered slightly north of
  the equator between the two belts of trade winds.
  
• There is little wind in the doldrums because the
  air expands, creating a zone of low pressure.

35
Surface Winds

• Between 30 degrees and 60 degrees latitude (north
  and south) are steady trade winds.
• Between 30 degrees and 60 degrees latitude (north
  and south) the prevailing westerlies blow in the
  opposite direction from the trade winds.
• Polar easterlies blow from northeast to southwest
  near the north pole and from southeast to
  northwest near the south pole.

36
(No Transcript)
37
Trade Winds and Westerlies
38
Diagram illustrating how Hadley cells create the
trades. The rising warm air in the tropics
creates a void that is filled by air coming from
higher latitudes, thus giving rise to the trade
winds.
39
Upper Troposphere

• Jet stream moves faster in the winter.
• Helps storms develop and move across the country.
• View Video

Weather Whiz Kids
40
Local Wind Systems

• Affect local weather
• Sea Breezes a convection current blows wind
  from the cooler sea toward warmer land during the
  day.
• Land Breezes at night, air moves toward the
  water as the land cools more rapidly than the
  water.

41
Low Pressure Circulation
42
High Pressure Circulation
43
Energy Transport
44
The components of the global climate system
Climate Education