LAYERS OF THE ATMOSPHERE

% Nitrogen

% Other Gases

Troposphere

Stratosphere

Mesosphere

Thermosphere

Rebecca Kalenak

Grade Level: 8-9

Strand: V, Use Scientific Knowledge from the Earth and Space Sciences in Real World Context.

Content Standard: 3, All Students will investigate and describe what makes up weather and how it changes from day to day, from season to season, and over long periods of time; explain what causes different kinds of weather and analyze the relationships between human activities and the atmosphere.

Benchmark: Describe the composition and characteristics of the atmosphere.

Benchmark Clarification: Human and natural activities affect the atmosphere. Scientists have collected data about the atmosphere from weather balloons, weather airplanes, satellites, and computer modeling.

Objectives; Students will be able to:

- Explain the chemical composition of the atmosphere in terms of Nitrogen, Oxygen, Argon, Water Vapor, and Carbon Dioxide.

- Describe the atmosphere in terms of layers, air pressure, temperature changes, and humidity.

Focus Question: What are the main gases that make up the atmosphere and how do they differ depending on what layer they are in?

Materials:

- Paper plates/cardboard

- Glue

- Markers/paint

- Packing peanuts/cotton balls

- String/wire

Vocabulary:

Air Pressure: is the force exerted on you by the weight of tiny particles of air, and as the number of molecules of air around you decreases, the air pressure decreases.

Altitude: the vertical elevation of an object above a surface

Atmosphere: the mass of air surrounding the earth

Mesosphere: the part of the earth's atmosphere between the stratosphere and the thermosphere in which temperature decreases with altitude to the atmosphere's absolute minimum of about -112°F (-80°C)

Molecules: the smallest particle of a substance that retains all the properties of the substance and is composed of one or more atoms

Stratosphere: the part of the earth's atmosphere which extends from about 7 miles (11 kilometers) above the surface to 31 miles (50 kilometers) and in which temperature increases gradually to about 32° Fahrenheit (0° C) and clouds rarely form

Thermosphere: the part of the earth's atmosphere that begins at about 50 miles (80 kilometers) above the earth's surface, extends to outer space, and is characterized by steadily increasing temperature with height

Troposphere: the lowest densest part of the earth's atmosphere in which most weather changes occur and temperature generally decreases rapidly with altitude and which extends from the surface to the bottom of the stratosphere

Water Vapor: Water in a gaseous form.

Activity:

1) Begin by asking the students what happens as you go farther up in the sky. See if they know anything about layers, air pressure, or temperature. Discuss what they know and how they found out.

2) Tell them that there are five different layers to the atmosphere, their job is to find the four layers, find definitions for them, and draw them. If students are having troubles direct them to: http://www.windows.ucar.edu ,This will give them all of the information they need.

3) Once the students have had time to look up the information ask some basic questions, where the weather takes place, which layer is warmest, what other sub-layers are in the layers.

4) Ask them if they found any information on the types of gases that are in the atmosphere layers. If not present Nitrogen, Oxygen, Argon, and Water Vapor, and Carbon Dioxide. Give them the chart with the percentage of gases that are present in the atmosphere.

5) Have them choose a number of packing peanuts or cotton balls to use and find out how many would equal that percentage. This will be a good math activity for them.

6) Once they have figured out how many of each gas they should us they can glue the pieces on to the different layers. Once the pieces on the layers have dried have them put the plates together in order of the layers so they can see what happens to the number of molecules in the air as we go up in altitude. Why does this happen?

7) Hang the projects from the ceiling so they have a visual idea of the ascending layers and the molecules lessening in numbers with altitude.

8) Assessment: Have them draw a picture of the layers and label each layer. Also include the major gases that are in our atmosphere.

Conclusion:

The students will be able to identify the five layers of earth and what the gases are that make our atmosphere. They will get a chance to figure out the percentage of that gas depending on how many pieces they decide to make their model out of. They don’t need to memorize the numbers, only remember which ones have a lot and which ones have just a little bit.

Student Directions

Work in teams of two

Decide how many pieces you will use for your model, somewhere between 40 and 100 will give you good numbers to work with.

Divide these pieces up based on the percent of the atmosphere that is Nitrogen_____%, Oxygen______%, and other gases such as Water Vapor, Argon, and Carbon Dioxide ______%

Now, out of the percents you filled in above each of the layers holds a certain percentage of that gas. Use the chart below to find out how many of you pieces will equal that percentage. Example: 78% of your pieces should be pulled aside for Nitrogen. Of the pieces you have labeled Nitrogen, 51% of those are going to be glues in you Troposphere. Figure out how many of each gas will be glued into which Layer. Fill in the # section based on how many of your pieces will equal that percent. Check your math!

Once you have the gases glued into the correct layer put your layers in order. You will each get twelve pieces of string. Tie them to the sides of your layers then to the sides of the layers above or below it. Once your layers are in order make sure they are labeled and hand in your project.