Layers of the Atmosphere
What is the troposphere?
This layer is where weather occurs and temperature decreases with altitude.
What is radiation
The transfer of energy through electromagnetic waves from the Sun.
What is humidity
Water vapor in the air
What are cumulus clouds
Puffy, lumpy looking clouds indicating fair weather, typically forming below 2,000 m.
What is air pressure?
The weight of the atmosphere above a surface, measured in millibars.
What is the stratosphere?
The layer containing the ozone layer
What is conduction
Heat transfer that occurs through direct contact between materials.
What is saturation
The state when air holds the maximum water vapor possible at a given temperature.
What are cirrus clouds
High, wispy clouds made of ice crystals, forming above 6,000 m.
Wind is the movement of air from __________ pressure areas to __________ pressure areas.
High to low
What is the mesosphere?
Middle layer; Meteors burn up in this atmospheric layer.
What is temperature inversion
An increase in temperature with height in an atmospheric layer
What is relative humidity?
The ratio of current water vapor to the maximum possible, expressed as a percentage.
What are stratus clouds
Layered sheetlike clouds that cover most or all of the sky and often lead to overcast conditions.
What is stable air?
Air that resists vertical movement
What is the thermosphere?
hottest layer
What is convection
the transfer of thermal energy by the movement of heated material from one place to another.
What is coalescence
The process where smaller cloud droplets merge to form larger droplets.
What are the four types of precipitation
Rain, snow, sleet, or hail
What is unstable air
Air that does not resist vertical displacement
What is the exosphere?
This outermost layer is where satellites orbit and transitions into outer space.
What is an adiabatic process?
This process occurs when air temperature changes without thermal energy being added or removed.
What is condensation
The transformation of water vapor into liquid water droplets, essential for cloud formation.
What is orographic lifting
occurs when an air mass is forced to rise over a topographic barrier
What is condensation nucleus
A small particle in the atmosphere where water droplets form