GEOG 1900 Midterm: midterm 2 study guide
11 Aug 2016
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Midterm 2 study guide: what is atmospheric pressure and the vertical distribution of pressure and temperature in the atmosphere, atmospheric pressure the weight of air pulled down by gravity a. i. The greatest atmospheric pressure is greatest at sea level and decreases with altitude a. ii. Air is compressible, and bottom layers are more compressed (larger air density near the surface: temperature based layers, atmospheric layers and their temperature profile, particularly troposphere and stratosphere, troposphere a. i. The direct source of energy for heating the troposphere is the surface, not the sun. a. ii. Where the majority of weather events occur a. iii. Shallowest layer, but contains 85% of the atmosphere"s mass (because air is compressible) a. iv. Thickness changes with latitude, shrinkage of volume near the poles due to cold temps: stratosphere b. i. Temperature increases with altitude, heated from above by ozone layer absorbing uv radiation (20-30 km) vertically stable b. ii. Contains 20% of atmospheric mass: mesosphere c. i.
