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Warm air rises primarily due to its lower density compared to cooler air. When gas molecules are warm, they move more vigorously and take up more space, decreasing air density and pressure. Warmer, lighter air is more buoyant than cooler air above it, causing the warm air to rise. The temperature of the atmosphere does not change uniformly with altitude because the main layers have different temperature gradients determined by their heat sources. The ground acts as a heat source for the troposphere by radiating heat from the sun's warming of its surface back into the air.

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94 views2 pages

1

Warm air rises primarily due to its lower density compared to cooler air. When gas molecules are warm, they move more vigorously and take up more space, decreasing air density and pressure. Warmer, lighter air is more buoyant than cooler air above it, causing the warm air to rise. The temperature of the atmosphere does not change uniformly with altitude because the main layers have different temperature gradients determined by their heat sources. The ground acts as a heat source for the troposphere by radiating heat from the sun's warming of its surface back into the air.

Uploaded by

Adi So
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© © All Rights Reserved
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1. Give a detailed explanation of why warm air rises.

It is common knowledge that warm air rises. It is normally assumed that is because warm air is lighter
than cooler air. While that is true there is a more fundamental process that takes place for the cause of
rising warm air. Warm air rises primarily due its lower density as compared to cooler air. As the
temperature increases, the density of the air decreases. But even air that is of a lower density will not
begin to rise by itself. https://www.weather.gov/jetstream/parcels#:~:text=Warm%20air%20rises
%20primarily%20due,begin%20to%20rise%20by%20itself.

When gas molecules are cool, they are sluggish. They take up less space. With the same number of
molecules in less space, both air density and air pressure are higher. When gas molecules are warm,
they move vigorously. They take up more space. Air density and air pressure are lower. Warmer, lighter
air is more buoyant than the cooler air above it. So the warm air rises.
https://flexbooks.ck12.org/cbook/ck-12-middle-school-earth-science-flexbook-2.0/section/10.4/
primary/lesson/temperature-of-the-atmosphere-ms-es/ Jul 04, 2019

2. Why doesn’t air temperature change uniformly with altitude? Give examples.

The property that changes most strikingly with altitude is air temperature. Unlike the change in pressure
and density, which decrease with altitude, changes in air temperature are not regular. A change in
temperature with distance is called a temperature gradient.

The atmosphere is divided into layers based on how the temperature in that layer changes with altitude,
the layer’s temperature gradient (Figure below). The temperature gradient of each layer is different. In
some layers, temperature increases with altitude and in others it decreases. The temperature gradient
in each layer is determined by the heat source of the layer. https://www.ck12.org/book/ck-12-earth-
science-for-high-school/section/15.2/

Altitude doesn't change uniformly because the four main layers of the atmosphere have different
temperature gradients, creating the thermal structure of the atmosphere.

3. Describe how the ground acts as the heat source for the troposphere. What is the

source of energy and what happens to that energy?

In the troposphere, temperature decreases with altitude. The troposphere gets some of its heat directly
from the Sun. Most, however, comes from Earth's surface. The surface is heated by the Sun. Some of
that heat radiates back into the air. This makes the temperature higher near the surface than at higher
altitudes.

4. How stable is an inversion and why? How does an inversion form?

5. Phoenix, Arizona, is a city in the Southwestern desert. Summers are extremely hot.

Winter days are often fairly warm but winter nights can be quite chilly. In December,

inversions are quite common. How does an inversion form under these conditions

and what are the consequences of an inversion to this sprawling, car-dependent


city?

6. Why can’t air from the troposphere and the stratosphere mix freely?

7. What is the heat source for the stratosphere? How is that heat absorbed?

8. Describe ozone creation and loss in the ozone layer. Does one occur more than the

other?

9. How and where are “shooting stars” created?

10.Why would an unprotected traveler’s blood boil in the mesosphere?

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