04. Vertical Structure of the atmosphere; Residence Time

The Atmosphere, the Ocean and Environmental Change (GG 140)

Pressure and density decrease exponentially with altitude in the atmosphere. This leads to buoyancy effects in the atmosphere when parcels of air are heated or cooled, or raised or lowered in the atmosphere. Temperature varies in a more complicated way with altitude in the atmosphere, with several inversions which occur at the boundaries of the various layers of the atmosphere. Solar radiation interacts differently with the gases that compose each layer of the atmosphere which affects which wavelengths of radiation are able to reach the surface of the Earth.

00:00 - Chapter 1. Introduction
02:57 - Chapter 2. Vertical structure of density and pressure in the atmosphere
09:59 - Chapter 3. Vertical structure of temperature in the atmosphere
15:50 - Chapter 4. Interaction between solar radiation and the atmosphere
20:39 - Chapter 5. Examples of height scales in the atmosphere
25:40 - Chapter 6. Layers in the Ocean
27:22 - Chapter 7. Layers in the Earth's Interior
29:24 - Chapter 8. Systems Analysis
31:20 - Chapter 9. Residence Time and the Hydrologic Cycle


Complete course materials are available at the Open Yale Courses website: http://oyc.yale.edu

This course was recorded in Fall 2011.