Lecture 11: Planetary Atmospheres

    Lecture 10: Planetary Atmospheres(Daniel version which is 10 NOT 11 for some reason):
    1. Atmosphere Basics
      1. planetary atmosphere.
    2. What is an atmosphere?
      1. Wikipedia: world, but this does NOT give the definition we want here, which is more like Wiktionary: Noun-6. Closer is pressure-supported astronomical object as opposed to kinetic-energy-supported astronomical object.
      2. gas.
      3. gas giant planets also have planetary atmospheres.
    3. Earth's atmosphere: Actually, it extends upward getting less dense a long way.
      1. Earth's exosphere lower boundary (AKA exobase, altitude 500 to 1000 km depending on solar activity); Earth's exosphere upper boundary (altitude ∼ 200,000 km ≅ 30 Earth equatorial radii).
      2. Astro Encyclopedia: Earth Atmosphere: files.
      3. IAL 11: Earth: Earth Atmosphere Composition.
      4. IAL 11: Earth: Earth Atmosphere Structure.
      5. IAL 11: Earth: Earth Atmosphere Dynamics.
    4. pressure:
      1. gas_animation.html
      2. ideal gas law: See File:Quantum ideal gas pressure 3d.svg.
    5. standard atmosphere pressure = 1 atm = 101.325 kPa = 1.01325 bar = 14.696 Psi = mean sea-level pressure.
      1. Nix.
    6. Where does th Earth's atmosphere end? Actually, it extends upward getting less dense a long way.
      1. Earth's exosphere lower boundary (AKA exobase, altitude 500 to 1000 km depending on solar activity); Earth's exosphere upper boundary (altitude ∼ 200,000 km ≅ 30 Earth equatorial radii).
      2. Astro Encyclopedia: Earth Atmosphere: files.
      3. Wikipedia: Outer space: boundary: altitude = 100 km (FAI) or Wikipedia: Karman line: proposed fiducial value = 100 km.
    7. The effects of planetary atmospheres:
    8. greenhouse effect:
      1. IAL 11: The Earth: The Greenhouse Effect.
    9. greenhouse effect and
      1. temperature_effective.html.
    10. If the Earth had albedo (diffuse reflectivity) = 0, its surface temperature would be set by primordial-radiogenic heating from the interior. greenhouse effect
    11. Earth's magnetosphere.
    12. aurora:
      1. earth_aurora_videos.html.
    13. Composition of the air.
      1. See keeling_curve.html
    14. How does the greenhouse effect work?
      1. See heat_flow.html in a house.
    15. Aurora.
      1. See noaa_aurora_line_spectrum.html for spectrum and videos.