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The atmosphere is heated chiefly by radiation from Earth's surface rather than by direct solar radiation because about 50 percent of the solar energy is absorbed at Earth's surface. 30 percent is reflected back to space. 20 percent is absorbed by clouds and the atmosphere's gases.
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Why does the thermosphere have the highest temperature out of all the other layers?
The thermosphere is heated by solar radiation particularly in the far ultraviolet range; much of this is filtered out by the atmosphere's lower layers - but in the these upper regions it is more exposed to this kind of radiation.
Is the earths atmosphere heated by solar energy?
yes
What causes the temperature to decrease when the sun is out?
The atmosphere is actually heated by the earth, not by the sun directly. Visible light passes through the atmosphere and strikes the surface of the earth, and thus warms the surface layer of the earth. The atmosphere is mostly transparent to visible light, meaning the light does not absorb visible light, and is therefore not heated by visible light. As the surface of the earth warms up, it radiates low intensity infrared radiation, which is not transparent to the atmosphere, and so the atmosphere absorbs the infrared radiation, and warms up. The air closest to the surface of the earth absorbs most of the infrared radiation, and is therefore warmer than air at a higher altitude. In fact, above about 10 km, the temperature starts to increase again due to the presence of the ozone layer. This absorbs solar ultraviolet radiation which leads to heating.
Why does the temperature of the atmosphere does not increase or decrease steadily as you move from earths surface toward space?
The upper layers of the atmosphere are heated from above, while the lower layers are heated from below, because infrared radiation is given off by the Earth's surface in response to solar heating. The lower troposphere (with its denser molecules and water vapor) receives heat from both re-radiation and convection. The result is that while the atmosphere always gets thinner with altitude, the temperature decreases with altitude in the troposphere, then increases with altitude in the stratosphere. The very high temperatures in the thermosphere are moot because of the low specific heat (energy capacity) of the tenuous gases there.
Why troposphere is the hottest part of the atmosphere?
because it is heated by the earth's surface.
When earths surface is heated it radiates most of the energy back into the atmosphere as ultraviolet radiation?
Not as ultraviolet; the radiation is emitted as infrared radiation.
If clouds absorb only a small amount of solar radiation how is Earth's atmosphere heated?
From the surface. Solar radiation is absorbed by the surface and emitted at a longer wavelength, which is essentially heat.
How many part of atmosphere heated by solar radiation?
All parts
When Earths surface is heated it radiates some of the energy back into the atmosphere as?
When Earths surface is heated it radiates some of the energy back into the atmosphere as "Infrared Radiation."
How do radiation reradiation conduction and convection work together to heat the atmosphere?
they are in a transfer of how the atmosphier is heated
If Earths surface is heated does it radiate most of the energy back into the atmosphere as ultraviolet radiation?
No. It radiates most energy back as infarred radiation.
How atmosphere is heated below?
by the radiation that is reflected back ar re-radiated by the land or water bodies
Why is Earth's atmosphere mainly heated from the ground up?
Solar radiation mostly passes through the atmosphere without heating it, due to its wavelength. It does not pass through the ground, however, and it heats the ground. The ground emits radiation at a wavelength dependent on its temperature. This radiation happens to be in the thermal infrared part of the spectrum, or in other words, sensible heat. Therefore, the atmosphere is heated by the surface, whereupon the heat tends to rise and heat the lower atmosphere.
What is what is the earths atmosphere heated by?
The trapping of heat by the Earth's atmosphere is called the greenhouse effect. During the greenhouse effect, radiation becomes entrapped which results in the heating of the Earth.
What type of substance is heated by radiation?
Any substance that absorbs the radiation is heated by it.
What is the name of the range of colors emitted by a heated atom?
The name of the range of colors emitted by a heated (energized, excited, etc...) atom is called an emission spectrum.
What heats the lower atmosphere?
The lower atmosphere is heated by the ground, which is heated by sunlight.
