E.S. 11

Explore Earth's atmosphere and its amazing layers! Learn about the troposphere, stratosphere, and beyond.

Use the video to answer questions below. Question 1: Label the layers of the atmosphere. Word Bank: COPY AND PASTEMesosphereStratosphereTroposphereExosphereThermosphere Exosphere Thermosphere Mesosphere Stratosphere Troposphere Question 2: Fill in the table with the missing information. Layer Information Exosphere Last layer. Extends into outer space. Ionosphere Charged ions, radio communication and auroras happen here. Mesosphere Where most meteors burn up. Means middle layer. Coldest Stratosphere Contains the ozone layer and jet stream Troposphere We live here. Where weather happens. Thermosphere hottest layer and thickest layer with two sub-layers Question 3: What is the best definition for Atmosphere? The layer of water covering Earth’s surface. A thin layer of gases that form a protective covering around the planet. The layer of continental and oceanic crusts. Question 4: Fill in the blanks. The atmosphere is a thin layer of gases that cover the planet. The most abundant gases in the atmosphere are nitrogen78% and oxygen 21%. The rest of the gases in the atmosphere only comprise about 1% of it. The atmosphere traps heat, making the temperature on Earth comfortable for living beings. The oxygenin our atmosphere is essential for life. Question 5: Why does air density decrease with increasing altitude within Earth's atmosphere? Air density decreases with increasing altitude because more atoms escape into outer space. Air density decreases with increasing altitude because the gravitational pull exerted by the Earth decreases as you go up in altitude. Air density decreases with increasing altitude because energy from the sun pushes the air particles closer to Earth. Question 6: What happens to air pressure as altitude increases? (Think about the top of a mountain) Decreases – the higher you go, the LESS pressure you feel Increases – the higher you go, the MORE pressure you feel Stays the same Earth's Early Atmosphere: The early atmosphere was probably formed from the gases given out by volcanoes. The early atmosphere was probably mostly carbon dioxide with little or no oxygen. It is during the late Precambrian era when cyanobacteriaforms creating oxygen. The atmosphere currently has a protective ozonelayer made up of O3. This layer protects us from harmful UV radiation.