Judy Martinez The word “atmosphere” has several meanings. Do you know all of them and how correctly you use this word in your speech?
The origin of the word “atmosphere”
What does the atmosphere consist of?
How is the atmosphere polluted?
The origin of the word “atmosphere”
The word “atmosphere” has Greek roots. It is formed from two Greek words: “atmosphere” – breath, steam and “sphere” – a ball, a round body. The most common meaning of this word is a spherical shell of air that covers the surface of our planet or any other planet in the universe.
In modern Russian, the word “atmosphere” is used in several meanings:
– a shell of a mixture of gases surrounding a planet or a star;
– air, gas mixture, suitable or unsuitable for breathing;
– unit of pressure measurement equal to 1 kgf / sq. Cm;
– in a figurative sense – the surrounding moral or emotional situation (for example, the well-known expression “They have their own atmosphere there”).
What does the atmosphere consist of?
The Earth’s atmosphere is inhomogeneous: with distance from the Earth’s surface, it becomes more and more rarefied and changes its composition.
The lower layer adjacent to the surface is called the troposphere. It has a thickness of 16-17 kilometers and the highest density, all atmospheric phenomena occur in it: clouds form, air masses move, water evaporates and condenses.
The next layer is called the stratosphere. It is located up to 90 km above the ground and has a very low density. The only atmospheric phenomenon that can be found in the stratosphere is noctilucent clouds, the lightest, clearest and highest of the clouds.
In addition, at an altitude of about 25 km in the stratosphere is the ozone layer, which consists of ozone molecules – triatomic oxygen. It protects the Earth’s surface from too intense solar ultraviolet radiation, which would otherwise destroy all life on the planet.
The ionosphere begins from a 90-kilometer height – a layer consisting of ionized air particles that has arisen under the influence of solar radiation.
Thanks to this layer, radio communication at long distances became possible: radio waves are reflected from the ionized layer and transmitted beyond the horizon line.
At night, the boundary of the ionosphere rises, so the radio range of available stations at this time of day is wider than during the day.
From a chemical point of view, the atmosphere consists of a mixture of gases: nitrogen (about 78%), oxygen (21%) and carbon dioxide (about 1%). In addition, water vapor is constantly present in the lower atmosphere.
How is the atmosphere polluted?
With the development of industry, the problem of atmospheric pollution, which is a consequence of human activities, is becoming more and more acute.
In order to obtain thermal and electrical energy, people burn millions of tons of coal and oil products, as a result of which combustion soot, carbon dioxide and various combustion gases are released into the atmosphere.
Numerous metallurgical, petrochemical and other enterprises emit huge amounts of gaseous waste every day, which also pollute and poison the air we breathe.
If in most European countries control over enterprises that can pollute the atmosphere is quite well established, then factories in third world countries emit harmful substances into the atmosphere in almost unlimited quantities.
Livestock also contributes significantly to air pollution, producing large amounts of organic waste. Their decay is accompanied by the release of carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulfide. Cars, throwing gasoline combustion products into the air, poison the atmosphere with carbon monoxide, heavy metals and other poisonous substances.
Today, one of the main tasks facing humanity is to reduce as much as possible atmospheric pollution, and in the long term – to completely get rid of harmful and poisonous industries.
The air we breathe must remain clean so that future generations of people can live in their natural habitat.
