The stratosphere is the second largest layer of the Earth's atmosphere, situated between the troposphere and the mesosphere.
It is at an altitude of 50 km from the surface and is home to the ozone layer.
The meaning of the word stratosphere comes from the Latin stratum, which means layer.
Features
The stratosphere concentrates 19% of the atmosphere's gases, it is the second layer closest to the Earth.
As a characteristic, it has little water vapor in its composition and has almost no clouds.
The movement of air in the stratosphere occurs horizontally.
Furthermore, the interaction between the stratosphere and the troposphere influences the distribution of gases in the atmosphere.
The stratosphere is rich in ozone gas and poor in oxygen gas.
Supersonic planes and weather balloons fly in stratospheric space.
There is also an intermediate layer between the stratosphere and the mesosphere called the stratopause.
Read too:
- Atmosphere of the Planets
- What is Atmosphere?
- Atmosphere layers
Ozone layer
THE ozone layer it is a gaseous covering found in the stratosphere.
It is extremely important for life on Earth as it absorbs the ultraviolet gases emitted by the Sun.
In the 1980s, scientists were able to prove that the continuous emission of gases by industry destroyed the ozone molecules in the stratosphere.
As a way to prevent the collapse of the ozone layer, the international community signed in 1987, the Montreal Protocol, a document aimed at reducing the emission of gases that induced their destruction.
In addition to human interference, natural phenomena such as volcanoes can also destabilize the ozone layer.
Also read about the Hole in the ozone layer.
Atmosphere layers
The Earth's atmosphere is also formed by the following layers of gases:
- Troposphere: Layer of the atmosphere where we live.
- mesosphere: It starts at the end of the stratopause and goes up to 85 km altitude from the Earth's surface.
- thermosphere: Largest layer of Earth's atmosphere.
- Ionosphere: Layer characterized by containing ion and electron charges.
- exosphere: Highest and last layer of the Earth's atmosphere from the surface.
To learn more, read also:
- Earth Structure
- Earth layers
