when it should be getting hotter because you are getting closer to the sun?
2006-08-15 03:16:49 · 6 answers · asked by mattD 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Earth Sciences & Geology
While some of the answers given so far are correct, it's a bit more complicated than that. Some of the answers are totally wrong!
The atmosphere is divided into four main layers by their changes in temperature.
The lowest part of the atmosphere & the one closest to the surface of the earth is called the troposphere. This is the layer containing the most atmospheric gases & the one where weather occurs.
As you move up away from the earth, the effects of gravity decrease. Air, like everything else with mass, is affected by gravity. Essentially, the higher you go, the less air there is.
Why is this important? Air absorbs heat. The more air present, the more heat absorbed. As you move higher there is less air therefore less heat.
Once you reach the stratosphere, the next layer, the temperature starts to heat up once again. This is due to the effects of the ozone layer. The ozone absorbs heat & radiation.
If you keep going upwards, you will reach the mesosphere, the coldest of earth's layers. Remember, the ozone layer was warming up the stratosphere. You have long since passed the ozone layer by now. The same rules apply here; less air means less heat.
If you continue to move upward you will reach the final layer called the thermosphere. Sometimes the thermosphere is said to be made up of two layers called the ionosphere & the exosphere. This is the hottest of all earth's layers. Let me explain why...
Remember the amount of air has to do with the amount of heat? Well in this case, there is far less air here BUT there is also far more heat & nasty radiation. How is this possible? It is the amount of heat that counts.
In this layer the air is so thin that even though the few particles that exist are heated to extreme temperatures, the odds of actually being hit by one are less. Everything in between the particles is the vacuum of space which has no heat. So the outer layer only appears to be cold when in reality it is considered the hottest of all the layers.
Hope this helps.
:)
2006-08-15 06:20:25 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
During the summer months, it does get hotter at higher elevations than at sea level - but only to a certain point. Space is very, very cold, so the closer you get to space, the colder it gets.
The sun, while it is very hot, warms our planet - but not like a fire in a fireplace warms up a room - heat from the sun doesn't just coming out in waves. The sun warms up our planet in a very similar way that the sun warms up a greenhouse - it's warm outside, but broiling hot inside a greenhouse. The energy is magnified by our atmosphere and is trapped so it can't escape. This is why places like the moon and Mars are so cold - because their atmospheres don't magnify and trap heat.
2006-08-15 10:59:57 · answer #2 · answered by Cassie 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
the air as it gets thinner will get colder. space in it self is a very cold cold place to be in, and just because the sun is so close to us does not mean it will get warmer as a person goes up. Space is a vactum and it takes lite years for the warmth of the sun to reach earth.
2006-08-15 13:33:04 · answer #3 · answered by wolf 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋
The sun's rays does not heat the atmosphere directly. It reaches the earth's surface and surface gets heated up.This heat is transferred to the air near the ground.So the heat gets reduced as we move up.Hope you understood.
2006-08-15 12:41:01 · answer #4 · answered by sarath 1 · 1⤊ 1⤋
The atmosphere thins out the higher you get...
2006-08-15 10:22:25 · answer #5 · answered by fairly smart 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
there atmoshpere get less dense and hold less heat
2006-08-15 10:23:17 · answer #6 · answered by weather_freak 1 · 1⤊ 0⤋