STRUCTURE OF THE ATMOSPHERE

air mass force pressure air pressure Air molecules densest at the bottom hi-A lo-P lo-D thinner air difficulty in breathing 100 km, the air is extremely thin and gradually merges with the near vacuum of interplanetary space A mixture of gases, in its normal state: colorless, tasteless and odorless Only the introduction of exotic materials from physical or biological processes brings some degree of opaqueness, odor and taste

PRINCIPAL COMPONENTS OF THE ATMOSPHERE

CONSTANT COMPONENTS nitrogen (79%)
oxygen (20%) argon (0.9%) neon helium methane krypton hydrogen

VARIABLE COMPONENTS water vapor

carbon dioxide carbon monoxide ozone sulfur dioxide nitrogen dioxide Solid Particles: 1. organic-spores, bacteria, fungi 2. inorganic dust, sand, ash(basic formation of clouds, fog and rainbow)

xenon (CO2)

nitrogen (N)
relatively inactive in atmosphere diluted O and lessen the rate at which oxidation and burning occurs in air

oxygen (O)
The most important gas Organisms cannot live without it Fuels will not burn

 % N and O remains constant from surface to about 80km There is a balance between the output and input of these gasses If no replacement: O -3000yrs, N 4B yrs

argon
noble gas: stable gas / unreactive Extracted from air and has a wide application to industry

water vapor
The most important of all the variables

carbon dioxide
Small amount enters the atmosphere from decay of organic materials, volcanic eruptions, burning fuels and exhalation of animal life Essential for photosynthesis and respiration Greenhouse gas CO2 and H2O absorb long wave radiation in the form of heat to warm earth Keep the ave. global temperature to 15o

carbon monoxide
A product of incomplete combustion High over metropolis where population and transportation are heavy

sulfur dioxide
Burning of fossil fuels, volcanic eruptions Combines with water vapor sulfuric acid Acid rains : corrodes metals, painted surface, causes lakes, ponds and soil to be acidic

ozone
Formed by the dissociation of molecular oxygen Blue in color, distinct odor

Depletion of the ozone layer

Ozone O3 forms in the stratosphere by UV rearrangement of plain O2 and absorbs UV Halons organic compounds containing Br and/or Cl; or CFCs, containing Cl and Fl can destroy ozone Ozone hole reported in 1985 and linked to CFCs in Antarctic ice clouds
Since banning CFCs, the hole seems to be mending

Air pollution
1948, Donora, PA an industrial area of steel, zinc and sulfuric acid factories
Fog settled in. Within a week 20 people had died, and nearly 7,000 were seriously ill.

Clean Air Act of 1963 in response to this and many other incidents

 Gases released when burning fossil fuels Burning hydrocarbons releases CO2 and water ideally (complete combustion) Fossil fuels contain impurities that react and form pollutants (i.e.: SOx, NOx) Incomplete combustion releases benzene, methane, CO

 Acid rain SOx & NOx react with water to form acidic precipitation
pH 7 is neutral, natural rain is ~ 5.7, acid rain at pH 1.7 has been measured

Consequences of acid rain

Human harm impairs lung function Property damage corrodes metal, limestone, and concrete. Ecological damage Adversely effects plant life

 Smog a brownish haze formed the combining of ozone (from reaction of oxygen & nitrogen oxides in sunlight) and other components of auto Smog & ozone in the troposphere exhaust Ozone respiratory irritant, aggravates asthma, may affect heart disease and cancer

 Toxic volatiles organic chemicals from industry and manufacture

Dioxin, benzene, solvents, etc.

Particulates any small piece of solid material that can become airborne Aerosol a particle so small it remains suspended in air Fly ash the solid waste from coal combustion

THE THERMAL STRATIFICATION OF THE ATMOSPHERE

CATEGORIZE ACCORDING TO
TEMPERATURE CHEMICAL PROPERTIES MIXING OF GASES

2 SPECIAL SUB LAYERS

IONOSPHERE OZONOSPHERE

IONOSPHERE
grabs electrons from atoms +charged ionized A thick layer of electrically charged molecules and atoms (ions) Lies within the thermosphere Important in long distance communication because it acts as a mirror in the atmosphere and reflects radio waves back to the earth Responsible for aurora borealis and aurora australis (red and green light due to reuniting with atoms)

OZONOSPHERE
high concentration of ozone molecules Upper stratosphere Produced by the action of UV rays on ordinary molecules About 3.3B tons of ozone forms a belt around the earth (20-30km above sea level) Absorbs UV-B rays, f not all exposed microoganism and animal tissues will be severely damaged Hole (thinning of layer) observed early 1980s

Classification of the layers of the Atmosphere

Homosphere Heterosphere

homosphere
The region includes troposphere,stratosphere and mesosphere Composition of atmosphere is fairly uniform up to 85km Composition is maintained by the turbulent mixing of air

heterosphere
Includes thermosphere and exosphere 85km upward Collision between atoms and molecules not frequent mixing does not occur Gases tends to form layers according to its density Lighter atoms and molecules on top

Tropical Cyclones
Characterize by low pressure area (center : eye) Diameter : 550km NH : wind blows ccw around its center of low P area SH : wind blows cw around low pressure area Formed over warm bodies of water 26-28o C

The EYE
Diameter : 10 -50km Light winds, clouds broken, warm temperature, sky clear, warm weather

The Eye Wall

Ring of intense thunderstorms whirling around the center and extends 15km above sea level

Inside PAR
Depression less than 63kph Storm 63- 117kph Typhoon - 118kph or more Typhoon Season : May Jan (womens name)

2. Monsoons
Arabic term mausim meaning season Seasonal reversal of winds Summer winds move onshore, winter winds move offshore 2 major monssonal systems : South Asia , East Asia

2 types of monsoon winds that affect the Philippines

1. NE monsoons winter (Nov Feb) amihan 2. SE monsoons summer (Jun Sep) habagat

Easterly Wave
Wave embedded within the trade winds Ahead of the axis of the wave western side : fine weather, few clouds Eastern side : towering cumulus clouds with frequent shower or rain Easterly waves affecting the Philippines: varies from cloudiness without precipitation to large amount of rainfall and may develop into tropical cyclones during rainy season

Cold Fronts
A region which separates a clod air mass from warm air mass (cold air replaces warm air) Increase in cloudiness and light rains ( Nov Feb) After a cold front : sky is clear, good visibility , cold

Local Disturbances
Due to topographic and geographic location 1. thunderstorm, lightning 2. orographic lifting

Thunderstorms
Caused by rising warm, moist air
Wind convergence i.e.: FL where land heating draws moist air from both ocean sides Convection rising moist air over continental interiors Orographic lifting warm, moist air lifting over hills or mountains Frontal thunderstorms along frontal boundaries, usually cold fronts

 Lightning discharge of static electricity built up in clouds, but how and why?
Static between winds and ice crystals in cumulonimbus clouds
Positive high up, negative down low

Cosmic rays hit cloud tops producing ions

Other ions occur by wind friction along the ground

In either case, when charge differential is large enough it discharges

El Nio
An anomalous current that brings warmer water to the west cost of South America
Occurs every 3-7 years for a year Weakens trade winds which reduces cold upwelling
This creates warmer surface water Depresses fisheries Changes weather patterns in may places

GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION OF PRESSURE SYSTEMS AND SURFACE WINDS WIND CONVERGE TOWARD LO-P AREA, DIVERGE OVER HI-P AREA

1. Subtropical High Pressure Cells (STHs) or Horse Latitude

30 degrees from both side of the equator Weather: nearly clear, warm, calm Characterize by: tropical sunshine and absence of wind Wind circulation: typically anticyclonic, divergent cw (NH),ccw(SH)

*2. Trade Winds

Comes from STHs and moves toward the equator Predominantly easterly flows towards the west (Northeast trades, Southeast trades) The most reliable wind, persistent in terms of velocity and directions Originates as dry, warm winds, capable of holding great amount of moisture Forced to release water: encounters geological barrier, pressure disturbance Wettest areas of the world : winward slopes of trade winds

3. Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ)

Where trade winds meet at the equator Characterize: low pressure area associated with instability and rising air : warm, humid ascending air produces towering clouds Weather : high humidity and often heavy rainfall Wind circulation: weak and erratic

doldrums
Trade winds do not converge Calm and variable winds

*4. Westerlies
Comes from STHs, poleward in direction Great wind system of the middle latitude Flows from west to east located 30 6degrees latitudes Predominantly 10 -15km elevation 1000skm x 100kmsx 10kms Move at high velocity ( jet streams)

5. Polar highs
High pressure cells Wind circulation: anticyclonic, air above sinks into the high and diverge horizontally near the surface cw (NH) ; ccw (SH)

*5. Polar Easterlies

Between polar high and 60 degrees latitude Blows from east to west Cold dry, quiet variable winds

6. Subpolar Low Pressure Zones

Meeting ground and zone conflict of cold polar easterlies and warm westerlies Characterize : rising air, widespread cloudiness, precipitation Weather: stormy conditions

Global winds and climate

Hadley cells in 1735, George Hadley came up with the basic idea of atmospheric heat transfer
Norwegian Carl Rossby noted the model didnt account for jet streams or Coriolis 1950 U of Chicago swirly experiment
Showed jet streams and eddy current cells (artifacts of Coriolis)

 Doldrums calm equatorial seas, the bane of sailors Horse latitudes at ~30o N/S latitude, high pressure with low surface winds also bad for sailors
Descending air splits and goes southwest as the Trade Winds And northeast as the Westerlies

 Another cell poleward (cold pole creates permanent high pressure)

Polar easterlies from descending polar air

Three-cell model atmosphere model with 3 convection cells in each hemisphere Subtropical jet stream runs between the trade winds and the westerlies Polar jet forms along the polar front