The troposphere
At the very bottom is the troposphere. All weather phenomena take place in it. Almost all clouds and thus water vapor are concentrated here. As we ascend, we quickly notice that the temperature decreases relatively evenly, depending on how humid the surrounding air is. At ground level, the temperature is on average 14°C, while at the border of the stratosphere it can easily reach -60°C.
The pressure also decreases, initially by 1 hectopascal every 8 meters. This value is called the barometric altitude. However, the further we climb, the more distance we have to cover for the pressure to decrease by 1 hectopascal. The reason for this is that gases are compressed under pressure and the pressure decreases as we go higher.
The boundary of the troposphere, the so-called tropopause, is located at a height of around 11 kilometers above Central Europe. However, the height of the tropopause depends largely on the temperature. Above the poles, the tropopause is at a height of around 8 km, and above the tropics, at a height of 16 km.
Clouds in the lower middle and upper levels of the troposphere
Clouds in the lower, middle and upper levels of the troposphere (Image source: Meteomeldungen/App)
The stratosphere
The stratosphere is located above the troposphere. At first the temperature here hardly decreases at all, then a very strong inversion sets in, so instead of the expected decrease in temperature, it increases again. The reason: this is where the ozone layer is located. Ultraviolet radiation from the sun is absorbed by the ozone, which heats up and breaks down.
While the temperature at the tropopause at 16 km is south africa phone number library about -60 °C, at the border to the mesosphere at a height of about 50 km it is about 0 °C. There are actually no clouds in the stratosphere, as there is hardly any water vapor there. However, when it gets very cold, sulfuric and nitric acid can freeze and a thin layer of ice crystals can form. Such clouds are called nacreous clouds. They mainly occur over the poles due to the low temperatures required.
Nacreous cloud in the stratosphere
Mother of pearl cloud in the stratosphere (Image source: Wikipedia)
The mesosphere
The mesosphere is the middle layer of the atmosphere a quick-start on japan sole proprietorships and extends from 50 km to about 80 km altitude. The temperature here decreases with altitude, from 0 °C to about -90 °C. When meteors fall to Earth, they often burn up in the mesosphere.
At the edge of the upper mesosphere, the air becomes so thin that wind is no longer possible. As a result, the gases that make up “air” are no longer mixed. Lighter gases such as hydrogen and helium are above adb directory heavier gases such as oxygen and nitrogen. This boundary is called the turbopause.
But even here, clouds are still very rarely found, the so-called noctilucent clouds at an altitude of around 80 to 85 km. To create these clouds, very low temperatures (-140 °C) are required so that the little water vapor can condense.