Earth's Atmosphere Layers

Earth's Atmosphere Layers

The atmosphere is the layer of gases, that surround the earth including the air that we all breathe. The atmosphere might be invisible but there's a lot going on up there. It has different layers starting on the ground and stretching all the way up into space.

Let's discuss each layer one by one!

Troposphere 

Troposphere is the first layer of the atmosphere. It's also the one where we all live in. It extends from the earth's surface to about 12 and a half miles in the sky. Our weather is formed in the sphere. Water evaporates from land to become snow or rain. The vapor contributes to the greenhouse effect. It traps the sun's heat close to our planet. As a result warm or cool weather comes hot. Air balloons fly in this layer.

Stratosphere

The layer above the troposphere is called the stratosphere. Stratosphere spans from the tropopause to about 31 miles up containing about 20 percent of the earth's gas. The ozone layer is found in this sphere, which protects us from harmful rays from the sun. The top part of the stratosphere is the hottest because the ozone layer generates a lot of heat. Airplanes in the jet aircraft fly in the stratosphere layer.

Mesosphere

The next atmospheric layer is known as the mesosphere. It extends from the stratosphere to approximately 58 miles high. It is the coldest layer of atmosphere about -130 degrees Fahrenheit near the top. This is the part where most meteors burn up sounding rockets and others may go up to the mesosphere.

Thermosphere

Thermosphere is the layer above the mesosphere. This layer spans almost 300 miles. It's very hot, as temperatures can reach up to 5000 degrees Fahrenheit. This is because the air in the thermosphere consumes lots of solar radiation. Most of the X-ray and UV radiations from the sun are absorbed in this sphere.

Exosphere

Exosphere is the last layer of the atmosphere. The exosphere starts at the thermosphere, but it doesn't really have a sharp end. Instead, it just thins out till it gets empty as the outer space. Its temperature varies between night and day. At night, it becomes freezing cold while during the daytime it can be very very hot. In this layer, atoms and molecules escape into space and the satellites orbit the earth.

Ionosphere

The layer of the atmosphere that reflects radio waves is the ionosphere.  It is the region of the earth's atmosphere between the stratosphere and  the exosphere.

Now you know about the layers of atmosphere.

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