Troposphere - Definition and Overview

The troposphere is the lowermost portion of Earth's atmosphere and the one in which clouds and most other weather phenomena occur. The greenhouse effect also occurs in the troposphere. This layer extends to an altitude of 16-18 km over tropical regions, decreasing to less than 10 km over the poles, and contains approximately 80% of the total air mass. Generally, jets fly near the top of this layer. The troposphere is directly below the stratosphere.

The troposphere is divided into six zonal flow regions, called cells. These are responsible for atmospheric circulation, and produce the prevailing winds.

The word troposphere stems from the Greek "tropos" for "turning" or "mixing". This region, constantly in motion, is the densest layer. Nitrogen and oxygen are the primary gases within this region. The change of temperature with height is larger than in other layers, the temperature decreasing from approx. +17°C at sea level to approx. -52°C at the beginning of the tropopause.

The tropopause marks the limit of the troposphere and the beginning of the stratosphere. The temperature above the tropopause increases slowly with height up to about 50 km.

                     == THE TROPOSPHERES UNIQUE FACTS==

the troposphere is where the main weather "making" is to be found. I is mainly where dust and wind gather.The troposphere starts at the earths surface and gose up to the topopause and then the stratosphere.

External Links

• Earth's Atmosphere (http://liftoff.msfc.nasa.gov/academy/space/atmosphere.html) according to NASA
• Composition of the Atmosphere (http://csep10.phys.utk.edu/astr161/lect/earth/atmosphere.html), from the University of Tennessee Physics dept.