Unit 2 - The Atmosphere - Vocabulary

A general term used to describe the amount of water vapor found in the atmosphere

A gas composed of three atoms of oxygen

The release of greenhouse gases and/or their precursors into the atmosphere over a specified area and period of time

Layer of the atmosphere that contains about 95 per cent of the Earth's air and extends about six to 17 km up from the Earth, depending upon latitude and season

The layer of the atmosphere between about 10 and 40 km above the Earth's surface within which temperatures rise with altitude. It contains 90 per cent of the atmosphere's ozone (O3)

This atmospheric layer is characterized by temperatures that quickly decrease as height increases. It extends from between 31 and 50 miles (17 to 80 kilometers) above the earth’s surface

This is the boundary zone (or transition layer) between the troposphere and the stratosphere. It is characterized by little or no change in temperature altitude increases

They are beautiful undulating sheets of light in the near-polar sky. They are caused by gases that become excited after being hit by solar particles. Most of them are 100 to 250 km above the ground

This atmospheric layer starts at about 43-50 miles (70-80 km) high and continues for hundreds of miles (about 400 miles = 640 km). It contains many ions and free electrons (plasma).

The outermost zone in the Earth's atmosphere.  This layer has an altitude greater than 480 kilometers and is primarily composed of hydrogen and helium gas.