47 (B) Atmosphere

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Atmosphere contains life-giving gases, like oxygen for man and animal, and
carbon dioxide for plants.
It also acts like a greenhouse and thus keeps the Earth warmer than it
would otherwise be.
The atmosphere, thus, acts like a blanket.
It regulates the heat balance of the Earth and also protects us from the
harmful ultraviolet radiation of the sun.
The atmosphere serves as a storehouse for water vapour, which leads to
precipitation and hence facilitates the hydrological cycles.
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The atmosphere has a layered structure, because of density stratification

as a result of which lighter gases move up and denser ones settle down.
The lowermost part of the atmosphere in which we live, and which is the
theatre for which we live, and which is the theatre for almost all the
weather phenomena is known as the troposphere.
The height of the troposphere at the poles is about 8 km, while at the
equator it is about 16 km. This is because there is greater heating at the
equator.
Above troposphere is the stratosphere, which is important primarily
because of the presence of zone.
This layer of calm and clear air is preferred for high-speed jet flights
because of the absence of air pockets.
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Above stratosphere is mesosphere, which is more of a transitional layer.

Above mesosphere lies the ionosphere, which has electrically conducting
layers that help in radio communication.
There are two important layers in the ionosphere viz. E Layer of Kennelly
Heavy side layer that reflects the medium radio waves, thus helping in
short distance radio communication and F Layer or Appleton layer that
reflects the short radio waves and helps in long distance radio
communication.
The outermost layer of the Earths atmosphere is known as the exosphere.
It is so highly rarified a region that its boundary is not clear.
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Insolation
The word insolation is an acronym for Incoming solar radiation, which is
received at the Earths surface at the rate of 1.94 calories per square
centimeter per minute.
Energy transfers in the atmosphere take place in three ways: radiation,
conduction and convection.
The vast amount of energy coming to and leaving the Earth is through
radiation.
Radiation from the Earth is called terrestrial radiation and it is in the form
of long waves. The atmosphere is heated more by terrestrial radiation than
the incoming solar radiation and this also explains why the atmosphere is
heated from the ground up instead of vice versa, specially in the
troposphere.
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Heat Budget
The average temperature of Earth remains rather constant. It has been

possible because of the balance between the amount of incoming solar
radiation and the amount of terrestrial radiation returned to space.
This balance of incoming and outgoing radiation has been termed Earths
heat budget.
Inversion of Temperature
Occasionally the temperature in the lower layers of the air increases
instead of decreasing with elevation.
It occurs particularly on cold winter night, when the sky is clear, the
air is very dry, and there is no wind.
These conditions permit quick radiation of heat from the earths
surface as well as from the lower layers of the atmosphere.
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Temperature Anomaly
Temperature varies even along the same parallel of latitude, land and
water contrasts, prevailing winds and ocean currents.
The difference between the mean temperature of any place and the mean
temperature of its parallel is called the temperature anomaly or thermal
anomaly.
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Air is an extremely compressible , and as result, atmospheric pressure

varies considerably with height.
Since the pressure will vary according to the weight of the air above it, the
lowest layers of air are densest.
The modern metric unit of pressure measurement is the millibar (mb), one
millibar being equal to the pressure necessary to support 0.75 mm of the
mercury column.
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Prevailing or Planetary windsblow throughout the year from one latitude to

the other in response to the latitudinal differences in air pressure, for example,
the trade winds and the westerly winds.
Westerliesof the southern hemisphere are stronger and more constant in
direction than those of the northern hemisphere because of the vast expanse
of water.
They are developed between 40 and 65 south latitudes. These latitudes are
hence often calledRoaring Forties, Furious Fifties and Shrieking
Sixtiesdreaded terms for navigators.
Periodic windsreverse their direction periodically with season. For example,
monsoons, land and sea breeze and mountain and valley breeze.
Local windsflow in comparatively small area and have special characteristics.
A lot of them are found in the Mediterranean lands and their nomenclature
derived from the regional language.
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Names
Nature
Region
Fohn
Warm
Alps
Chinook (Snoweater)
Warm
Rockies
Kalbaisakhi
Warm
North India
Berg
Warm
S. Africa
Zonda
Warm
Andes
Loo
Warm
Indian Subcontinent
Santa Ana
Warm
Coastal Southern California
Southerly
Cold
New South Wales Burster
Khamsin
Warm
Egypt
Harmattan(Doctor)
Warm
Guinea Coast
Mistral
Cold
S E France
Samun
Warm
Iran
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Regions
Cyclones
Typhoons
China Sea
Tropical cyclones
Indian Ocean
Hurricanes
Caribbean Sea
Tornadoes
USA
Willy Willies
Northern Australia
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A cloud is a mass of small water droplets or tiny ice crystals.

Clouds form when moist air rises and cools.
Heat from the sun turns, water in the oceans, rivers and moist soil, into water
vapour.
The water vapour expands as it rises and becomes cooler.
Cool are cannot hold asmuchmoisture as warm air and soon reaches a saturation
point.
The water vapour condenses into tiny water droplets forming clouds.
Their form, shape, height and movements tell us a great deal about the sky
conditions and the likely weather.
Clouds are classified according to their appearance, form and height. There are
four groups.
A High clouds 6000 to 12000 m
B Middle clouds 2100 to 6000 m
C Low clouds below 2100 m
D Clouds of great 1500 to 9000 m vertical extent.
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The different types of cloud are given Latin names which are all combinations
of the following words.
1. Cirrus means looking like a feather, it is used to describe the very high
clouds.
2. Cumulus means looking like a heap. It is used to describe clouds which
have flat bases and rounded tops. There are patches of blue sky between
the clouds.
3. Stratus means lying in level sheets. It is used for layer-type clouds.
4. Nimbus means rain cloud.
5. Alto means high.
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At interval of some 3 to 8 years there occurs a remarkable disturbance of ocean

and atmosphere.
It begins in the eastern Pacific Ocean and spreads its effects widely over the globe
for more than a years time.
It brings with it unseasonal weather patterns with abnormalities in the form of
droughts. Heavy rain falls, severe spells of heat and cold, or a high incidence of
cyclonic storms.
This occurrence is referred to as EL NINO, meaning the Christ Child in Spanish
since this phenomenon occurs each year around Christmas time.
With the onset of El Nino, upwelling ceases, the cool water is replaced by warm
water from the west, and the plankton and their anchoveta predators disappear.
Vast numbers of birds that feed on the anchoveta die of starvation.
The El Nino (EN) condition influences climates on the two sides of the tropical
Pacific Ocean.
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Global warming refers to an average increase in the Earths temperature,

which in turn, causes changes in climate. A warmer Earth may lead to
changes in rainfall patterns, a rise in sea level, and a wide range of impacts
on plants, wildlife, and humans. When scientists talk about the issue of
climate change, their concern is about global warming caused by human
activities.
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It has been conclusively proved that climate change is attributable to

human intervention. Carbon dioxide, emitted mainly by the burning of
fossil fuels, and the emission of methane, nitrous oxide, CFCs and other
greenhouse gases thickens the blanket of greenhouse gases over the earth
s atmosphere, upsetting the natural flow of energy from the sun.
Deforestation accelerates global warming by reducing the absorption of
carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
Based on current emission levels, it is estimated that the global
temperature will rise by between 1C and 3.5C by the year 2100; that even
after emission levels are stabilized, climate change will continue to occur
for hundreds of years.
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The Greenhouse Effect is the result of the atmospheres absorption of longwave radiation emitted by Earth.
Among the atmospheric constituents, carbon dioxide absorbs the largest
proportion of that radiation.
Thus, when the carbon dioxide content of air changes, a corresponding increase
or decrease in the greenhouse effect occurs.
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The ozone layer is found in the atmosphere between 20-50 Km from the Earths
surface.
The ozone layer is a region of concentration of the allotrope of an oxygen molecule
known as ozone (O3), which is produced by the action of solar radiation on ordinary
oxygen atoms.
It filters sunlight and prevents the harmful ultraviolet radiation from reaching the
Earths surface by absorbing most of the ultraviolet radiation.
If these ultraviolet rays were to reach the Earths surface in full intensity, all
exposed bacteria would be destroyed and animal tissues damaged severely.
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It is the precipitation charged with an excessive amount of acid droplets

formed when oxides of Sulphur and Nitrogen, released by the burning of
hydrocarbons, are converted to acids in the atmosphere.
Acid rain leaches crucial minerals like calcium and magnesium, which are
essential for plant growth, from the soils. A related problem is the continued
leaching of heavy metals and other substances, providing a persistent source
of toxicity to surrounding vegetation and aquatic life.
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Type
Connects points of equal
Isallobar
Change in atmospheric pressure
Isobath
Depth below the surface of an ocean
Isobathytherm
Temperature at a given depth
Isobar
Atmospheric pressure
Isothere
Mean summer temperature
Isocheim
Mean winter temperature
Isogeotherm
Temperature in the earths interior
Isotach
Wind speed
Isohel
Sunshine duration
Isohyet
Rainfall amount
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47 (B) Atmosphere

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47 (B) Atmosphere

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www.iasexamportal.

The atmosphere has a layered structure, because of density stratification

Above stratosphere is mesosphere, which is more of a transitional layer.

The average temperature of Earth remains rather constant. It has been

Air is an extremely compressible , and as result, atmospheric pressure

Prevailing or Planetary windsblow throughout the year from one latitude to

Coastal Southern California

New South Wales Burster

A cloud is a mass of small water droplets or tiny ice crystals.

At interval of some 3 to 8 years there occurs a remarkable disturbance of ocean

Global warming refers to an average increase in the Earths temperature,

It has been conclusively proved that climate change is attributable to

It is the precipitation charged with an excessive amount of acid droplets

Connects points of equal

Change in atmospheric pressure

Depth below the surface of an ocean

Temperature at a given depth

Mean summer temperature

Mean winter temperature

Temperature in the earths interior

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