Portrait of the Atmosphere
Match each item with the correct item. Please use each answer only once. 1. Troposphere 2. Mesopause 3. Ozone layer 4. Thermopause 5. Thermosphere 6. Stratosphere
1. Where weather occurs 2. Coldest part of atmosphere 3. Absorbs UV radiation 4. 80 to 600 km (50 to 370 miles) 5. High temperatures (up to 1200ºC) but not hot 6. Joseph Kittinger jumped from a balloon in this part of the atmosphere.
When there is ________ it gets warmer as altitude increases.
A temperature inversion
What does ozone do in the stratosphere?
Absorbs ultraviolet energy from the Sun
Sources of carbon monoxide include _____________.
All of these are sources of CO
Several gases in the atmosphere are from biological sources, either respiration, photosynthesis, or decomposition. Some atmospheric gases are man-made from industrial processes. Select the gas below that is not the direct result of biological or man-made processes.
Argon gas (Ar)
The temperature at the top of the mesosphere is about ________ degrees Celsius.
-100 C
Which molecule does not occur naturally or biologically?
CFCs and HFCs
Which gases in the atmosphere are compounds of two or more different elements?
Carbon Dioxide, water, and methane
Which law describes what happens to volume and temperature when mass and pressure are held constant?
Charles' Law
Which part of the atmosphere has the largest change (or difference) in pressure?
Close to the Earth's surface to the tallest mountain
True or False? It is OK to run your generator in the carport so no one steals your generator at night.
False
Which gases in the air are noble gases thus non-reactive?
Helium, neon, argon, and xenon
Which gases in air are diatomic of the same element?
Hydrogen, Nitrogen, and Oxygen
What pattern do you see in temperature and pressure?
Pressure decreases and temperature decreases and then pauses with an increase at higher altitudes
If you have a pressure cooker that is sealed (mass and volume do not change) and you put the cooker on the stove and heat it up, what happens?
Pressure increases
If you have a soda can that is not open but still sealed (mass does not change) and you are in a room with a constant temperature and you squeezed the can so that its volume is smaller, what happens?
Pressure increases
True or False? Nitrogen dioxide is a deep red-orange gas that is poisonous but not flammable and is responsible for the reddish-brown color of smog.
True
True or False? Ozone is a gas that is harmful and helpful to people.
True
Which city has the lowest air pressure on average?
Ulan Bator, Mongolia-1,350 meters (4,429 feet)
Which pollutants come from gas or diesel-burning motor vehicles?
VOC, PM, CO, NO2
Which is a natural source of carbon dioxide?
Volcanic activity
If you have a balloon that was tied off (mass does not change) and you put the balloon in the freezer, what happens?
Volume decreases
Referring to the map, what causes particulate matter to be high in the Sahara in northern Africa?
a dust storms
In the this week's activity, you examined how pressure and temperature change with altitude in the atmosphere in the virtual balloon experiment (https://scied.ucar.edu/virtual-ballooning). In the experiment, you recorded the pressure and temperature as the balloon ascended to higher altitudes. As you traveled up into the atmosphere (increasing altitude), the pressure
decreases to low pressure
According to the figure, chlorine atoms change ozone molecules to what?
oxygen molecules and oxygen atoms
Which is a main characteristic of the stratosphere?
permanent temperature inversion
Which condition is not among the human health problems caused by exposure to increased levels of ultraviolet radiation?
respiratory problems
Clouds in the troposphere end at the tropopause because
the stratosphere is too warm
Based on your results, at what altitude does each of these part of the atmosphere occur? Select the closest values to your results. 1. Troposphere 2. Tropopause 3. Stratosphere 4. Stratopause
1. 0 to 10 km 2. 10 to 20 km 3. 20 to 48 km 4. 48 to 50 km
Match the following altitudes to the correct pressure in mb, select the closest number 1. 0 kilometers 2. 10 kilometers 3. 20 kilometers 4. 40 kilometers
1. 1013 mb 2. 290 mb 3. 80 mb 4. 0 mb
Match the pollutant to its health effect 1. carbon monoxide (CO) 2. Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) 3. Ground-level ozone 4. Sulfur dioxide (SO2) 5. Volatile organic compounds (VOC)
1. Headaches, drowsiness, death 2. Lung irritation and respiratory disease 3. Decrease crop and other plant growth 4. Acid rain and ecosystems damage 5. Damage to liver, kidneys, and central nervous system
Match the following, please use each answer only once. 1. Temperature inversions 2. Montreal Protocol 3. Photochemical smog 4. Aerosols 5. Clean Air Act 6. Acid Rain
1. Keeps pollution trap near Earth's surface 2. Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) 3. Car exhaust 4. Soot, dust, sea salt, and pollen 5. Limits pollution released into atmosphere 6. from nitrogen dioxide from car exhaust reacting with water
For each of these diatomic gases, match the percentage by volume. 1. Hydrogen 2. Oxygen 3. Nitrogen
1. Trace 2. One fifth of the atmosphere (21%) 3. 78% of the atmosphere
Match the following gases to the correct answer. Please use each answer only once. 1. Water 2. Oxygen 3. Carbon dioxide 4. Nitrogen gas 5. Argon gas 6. Methane
1. Variable amount (0% to 4.0%) by volume 2. Exists as diatomic and triatomic molecules in atmosphere 3. 0.0408% by volume 4. Most abundant gas in atmosphere 5. Most abundant noble gas 6. From decomposition of organic matter
Which law describes what happens to pressure and volume when mass and temperature are held constant?
Boyle's Law
As pressure decreases, does the temperature increase or decrease when mass and volume are held constant?
Decrease
When mass and pressure are held constant, does temperature increase or decrease as volume decreases?
Decrease
When mass and temperature are held constant, does the volume increase or decrease as pressure increases?
Decrease
Assume mass and volume are constant and allow pressure and temperature to change. What happens to temperature as pressure decreases?
Decreases
How does air pressure change in the atmosphere from the Earth's surface to the top of the atmosphere?
Decreases
What are the sources of man-made Particular Matter in the atmosphere?
Dirt roads, agriculture fields, smokestacks, fires, construction sites
As you moved from 10,000 metres (10 kilometres) to 20,000 metres (20 kilometres) in the Balloon Experiment what happened to temperature?
Does not increase
In part two of the this week's activity, you explored the Gas Laws and conducted experiments in the Animated Gas Lab http://www.grc.nasa.gov/WWW/K-12/airplane/Animation/frglab2.html. The Animated Gas Lab has four variables - Mass, Volume, Pressure, and Temperature. To run an experiment, you can "freeze" or hold constant two variables then observed what happen to the other two variables. You conducted several experiments and recorded your results. Your observations follow the Gas Laws. Pick the result below that IS NOT one you observed (i.e., does not obey the Gas Laws). The animation below is one of the experiments and will help you with this question.
If mass and temperature are constant, pressure increases as volume increases
As temperature increases, does the pressure increase or decrease when mass and volume are held constant?
Increase
When mass and pressure are held constant, does the volume increase or decrease as temperature increases?
Increase
When mass and temperature are held constant, does the pressure increase or decrease when volume decreases?
Increase
If we assume volume is constant, then the mass is decreasing with increasing altitude. What happens to temperature as mass decreases?
Increases
Which statement is not true of the exosphere?
It is where meteors burn up as they enter the atmosphere from space.
Based on your balloon results: Above 50 km, which part of the atmosphere are you in?
Mesosphere
Which element exists in the atmosphere as diatomic and triatomic molecules?
Oxygen
Which is not a greenhouse gas?
Oxygen
Which is not found in the troposphere?
Permanent temperature inversion
The timing of the solar wind coincides with the timing of
Solar flare activity
At 30,000 meters (30 kilometers), which part of the atmosphere are you in?
Stratosphere
What happens as you move higher in the atmosphere above 50 km?
Temperature decreases
