Chapter- 3: Layers of the Atmosphere

Important Facts on Layers of the Atmosphere:

 An atmosphere is a layer of gas or layers of gases that envelop a planet, and is held in
place by the gravity of the planetary body.
 As of 2023, dry air contains 78.08% nitrogen, 20.95% oxygen, 0.93% argon,
0.04% carbon dioxide, and trace gases.
 The atmosphere of Earth is composed of layers with different properties, such as specific
gaseous composition, temperature, and pressure.
 These layers are the troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere and thermosphere and Exosphere.
 The troposphere is the lowest layer of the Earth's atmosphere.
 It extends from Earth's surface to an average height of about 12 km) at the geographic
poles to 17 km at the Equator.
 The troposphere is bounded above by the tropopause, a boundary marked in most places
by a temperature inversion (i.e. a layer of relatively warm air above a colder one).
 The temperature usually declines with increasing altitude in the troposphere.
 The lowest part of the troposphere i.e. Earth's surface is typically the warmest section of
the troposphere.
 The troposphere contains roughly 80% of the mass of Earth's atmosphere.
 The stratosphere is the second-lowest layer of Earth's atmosphere.
 It lies above the troposphere and is separated from it by the tropopause.
 This layer extends from the top of the troposphere at roughly 12 km above Earth's surface
to the stratopause at an altitude of about 50 to 55 km.
 The temperatures usually rise with increasing altitude due to the absorption of ultraviolet
radiation (UV) from the Sun by the ozone layer.
 The stratosphere is almost completely free of clouds and other forms of weather.
 The stratosphere is the highest layer that can be accessed by jet-powered aircraft.
 The mesosphere is the third highest layer of Earth's atmosphere, occupying the region
above the stratosphere and below the thermosphere.
 It extends from the stratopause at an altitude of about 50 km to the mesopause at 80–
85 km above the sea level.
 In this layer, temperatures drop with increasing altitude to the mesopause.
 It is the coldest place on Earth and has an average temperature around −85 °C.
 Lightning-induced discharges known as transient luminous events (TLEs) occasionally
form in the mesosphere above tropospheric thunderclouds.
 The mesosphere is also the layer where most meteors burn up upon atmospheric entrance.
 The mesosphere is mainly accessed by sounding rockets and rocket-powered aircraft.
 The thermosphere is the second-highest layer of Earth's atmosphere.
 It extends from the mesopause (which separates it from the mesosphere) at an altitude of
about 80 km up to the thermopause at an altitude range of 500–1000 km.
 The thermosphere is also referred to as the exobase because the thermopause lies at the
lower boundary of the exosphere.
 The lower part of the thermosphere, from 80 to 550 kilometres above Earth's surface,
contains the ionosphere.
 The temperature of the thermosphere gradually increases with height and can rise as high
as 1500 °C (2700 °F).
 This layer is completely cloudless and free of water vapour.
 Non-hydrometeorological phenomena such as the aurora borealis and aurora australis are
occasionally seen in the thermosphere.
 The exosphere is the outermost layer of Earth's atmosphere (i.e. the upper limit of the
atmosphere).
 It extends from the thermopause at the top of the thermosphere at an altitude of about
700 km above sea level, to about 10,000 km where it merges into the solar wind.
 This layer is mainly composed of extremely low densities of hydrogen, helium and
several heavier molecules including nitrogen, oxygen and carbon dioxide closer to the
exobase.
 Earth's auroras—the aurora borealis (northern lights) and aurora australis (southern
lights) sometimes occur in the lower part of the exosphere where they overlap into the
thermosphere.
 The exosphere contains many of the artificial satellites that orbit Earth.
 About 90% of the ozone in Earth's atmosphere is contained in the stratosphere.
 The ionosphere is a region of the atmosphere that is ionized by solar radiation.
 The planetary boundary layer is the part of the troposphere that is closest to Earth's
surface and is directly affected by it, mainly through turbulent diffusion.
 The average atmospheric pressure at sea level is defined by the International Standard
Atmosphere as 101325 pascals.
 The average mass of the atmosphere is about 5 quadrillion (5×10 15) tonnes or 1/1,200,000
the mass of Earth.
 The first atmosphere consisted of gases in the solar nebula is primarily hydrogen.
 The ozone layer is a region of Earth’s stratosphere that absorbs most of
the ultraviolet radiation coming from the Sun.
 The ozone layer was discovered in 1913 by the French physicists Charles Fabry
and Henri Buisson.
 The ozone hole was discovered in the year 1984 by Jonathan Franklin, Joseph Farman
and Brian Gardiner in the Antarctic region.
 The study of the atmospheric phenomenon is called Meteorology.
Some Important MCQs on Layers of the Atmosphere:

1. Which is the correct option that represents the arrangement of atmospheric layers?
a) Mesosphere, Ionosphere, Ecosphere, Troposphere, Stratosphere
b) Ionosphere, Ecosphere, Mesosphere, Stratosphere, Troposphere
c) Troposphere, Stratosphere, Mesosphere, Ionosphere, Ecosphere
d) Ecosphere, Troposphere, Ionosphere, Mesosphere, Stratosphere

Answer: c) Troposphere, Stratosphere, Mesosphere, Ionosphere, Ecosphere

2. Ozone layer of the Earth’s atmosphere is important for living organisms because it:
a) Prevents entry of X-rays.
b) Prevents entry of ultra-violet rays.
c) Prevents acid rain on Earth.

d) Maintains the level of oxygen on Earth.

Answer: b) Prevents entry of ultra-violet rays.

3. In the atmosphere, the layer above the troposphere is:

a) Exosphere
b) Thermosphere
c) Mesosphere

d) Stratosphere
Answer: d) Stratosphere

4. Which one of the following statements about the atmosphere is correct?

a) The atmosphere has no definite upper limits but gradually thickens until it becomes
imperceptible.

b) The atmosphere has no definite upper limits but gradually thins until it becomes
imperceptible.
c) The atmosphere has definite upper limits but gradually thins until it becomes imperceptible.
d) The atmosphere has definite upper limits but gradually thickens until it becomes
imperceptible.
Answer: a) The atmosphere has no definite upper limits but gradually thickens until it becomes
imperceptible.

5. Most of the ozone in the atmosphere is found in:

a) Stratosphere
b) Troposphere
c) Mesosphere

d) Ionosphere
Answer: a) Stratosphere

6. Which one of the following gases is found in the highest quantity in the Exosphere?
a) Helium
b) Hydrogen
c) Nitrogen
d) Oxygen
Answer: a) Helium

7. All vital atmospheric processes leading to various climatic and weather conditions takes place
in the:
a) Exosphere
b) Troposphere
c) Ionosphere
d) Stratosphere
Answer: b) Troposphere

8. The study of the atmospheric phenomenon is called:

a) Astronomy
b) Astrology
c) Meteorology
d) Seismology
Answer: c) Meteorology

9. In how many layers is the atmosphere divided?

a) 5
b) 4
c) 3
d) 2
Answer: a) 5

10. The Equator does not pass through which of the following countries?
a) Brazil
b) Indonesia
c) Kenya
d) Mexico

Answer: d) Mexico

11. Which one of the following rivers crosses the tropic of Capricorn twice?
a) Limpopo
b) Nizer
c) Vaal
d) Zambezi
Answer: a) Limpopo

12. Which of the following statement is/are correct?

a) The main gases within the Earth’s exosphere are the highest gases, mainly hydrogen, with
some helium, carbon dioxide, and atomic oxygen near the exobase.
b) The exosphere is the last layer before space.

c) Since there is no clear boundary between space and the exosphere, the exosphere is sometimes
used synonymously with outer space.
d) All the above.
Answer: d) All the above.

13. The average amount of energy received on a surface perpendicular to incoming radiation at
the top of the atmosphere is called:
a) Solar constant

b) Solar radiation
c) Electromagnetic constant
d) Electromagnetic spectrum
Answer: b) Solar radiation

14. Ozone layer depletion is a major phenomenon in:

a) Exosphere
b) Thermosphere
c) Troposphere
d) Stratosphere
Answer: d) Stratosphere
15. The layer of the atmosphere close to the Earth’s surface is called:
a) Exosphere
b) Troposphere
c) Ionosphere

d) Stratosphere
Answer: b) Troposphere

16. The climate in the northeastern part of Eastern Europe is generally:

a) cooler and drier than the climate of most countries on the Balkan Peninsula.
b) colder than the climate of the land to the north.

c) warmer than the climate of Western Europe.

d) wetter than the climate of the lands bordering the Mediterranean Sea.
Answer: b) colder than the climate of the land to the north.

17. The chemically inactive gas present in atmosphere is:

a) Water vapour

b) Oxygen
c) Nitrogen
d) Argon
Answer: d) Argon

18. The combustion of coal and oil is a major source of which greenhouse gas?

a) CFCs
b) Methane
c) Nitrous Oxide
d) None of the above
Answer: d) None of the above.
19. Which among the following is responsible for the greenhouse effect of the atmosphere, along
with carbon dioxide?
a) Water vapour
b) Hydrogen
c) Nitrogen
d) Sulphur dioxide
Answer: a) Water vapour

20. The slow wobbling of Earth as it spins on its axis is called:

a) Eccentricity
b) Extension
c) Aphelion
d) Precession

Answer: d) Precession.

21. When determining climate change, oxygen isotope measurements are made from an analysis
of?

a) Glacial ice
b) Lava
c) Cores from old trees
d) Ocean water
Answer: a) Glacial ice

22. Which of the following is associated with the astronomical theory of climate change?
a) Eccentricity of Earth’s orbit
b) Precession of Earth’s axis
c) Obliquity of Earth’s axis
d) All of the above.
Answer: d) All of the above.

23. The primary effect on the climate of a volcanic eruption depends on:

a) The amount of water vapour produced

b) The quantity of lava produced
c) How hot the eruptive products are
d) None of the above.
Answer: d) None of the above.

24. Which of the following is a possible consequence of greenhouse warming?

a) A rise in sea level
b) New weather patterns
c) Alteration of the world’s water resources
d) All of the above
Answer: d) All of the above

25. Which of the following is NOT a significant natural cause of climate change?
a) Solar variability
b) Erosion of the land
c) Volcanic activity
d) Plate tectonics

Answer: b) Erosion of the land

26. Greenhouse gases are gases that can absorb the thermal energy emitted by the Earth, creating
the greenhouse effect, which:

a) Changes thermodynamic process

b) Changes water circulation
c) Warms the universe
d) Warms the Earth
Answer: d) Warms the Earth

27. Which of the following is NOT included in Earth’s climate system?

a) Solid Earth
b) Solar sphere
c) Hydrosphere
d) Atmosphere
Answer: b) Solar sphere

28. Liquid water can store more heat energy than an equal amount of any other naturally
occurring substance because liquid water:
a) Has the higher specific heat

b) Has its greatest density at 4° C

c) Can be changed into a solid or a gas
d) Covers 71% of Earth’s surface
Answer: a) Has the higher specific heat

29. Which one of the following lists of climatic zones from nearest to the equator is in the correct
order of latitude?
a) Equatorial, Deserts, Mediterranean, Tundra
b) Equatorial, Mediterranean, Deserts, Tundra
c) Deserts, Tundra, Mediterranean, Equatorial

d) Tundra, Deserts, Mediterranean, Equatorial

Answer: a) Equatorial, Deserts, Mediterranean, Tundra

30. In which layer most of the ozone in the atmosphere is concentrated in?
a) Stratosphere
b) Troposphere
c) Mesosphere
d) Ionosphere

Answer: a) Stratosphere

31. The Stratosphere is said to be ideal for flying jet aircraft because:
a) Of the absence of the clouds and other weather phenomena.
b) This layer is out of the firing range of antiaircraft
c) The temperature is constant and ideal for aircraft engine efficiency

d) This layer is rich in ozone which reduces fuel consumption.

Answer: a) Of the absence of the clouds and other weather phenomena.

32. The ozone layer in the upper part of the atmosphere protects us from:
a) Ultraviolent rays
b) Ultrasonic rays

c) Cosmic rays
d) Infra-red rays
Answer: a) Ultraviolent rays

33. What is the full form of ITCZ?

a) Inter-Tropical Centre Zone

b) Intra-Tropical Centre Zone

c) Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone
d) Inter-Tropical Converter Zone
Answer: c) Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone
34. Television signal cannot be received generally beyond a particular distance due to:
a)Weakness of antenna
b) Weakness of signal
c) Absorption of signal in the air

d) Curvature of the earth

Answer: d) Curvature of the earth

35. Which one of the following zones of the atmosphere is rich in ozone gas?
a) Stratosphere
b) Troposphere

c) Mesosphere
d) Ionosphere
Answer: a) Stratosphere

36. The ‘Ocean of Storms’ is the name given to:

a) Pacific Ocean

b) Atlantic Ocean
c) Arctic Ocean
d) A waterless area on the moon surface
Answer: d) A waterless area on the moon surface

37. Where is the headquarters of the World Meteorological Organization located?

a) Geneva
b) London
c) Washington
d) Moscow
Answer: a) Geneva
38. Which is the lowest layer of the atmosphere?
a) Stratosphere
b) Troposphere

c) Mesosphere
d) Thermosphere
Answer: b) Troposphere

39. Which of the following gases is placed second in respect of abundance in the Earth’s
atmosphere?
a) Carbon dioxide
b) Nitrogen
c) Hydrogen
d) Oxygen

Answer: d) Oxygen

40. What type of light beams is received from the sunlight on the Earth’s surface?
a) Diverging
b) Converging
c) Parallel

d) Random
Answer: a) Diverging

41. What is the season during the summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere?
a) Summer
b) Winter

c) Autumn
d) Spring
Answer: a) Summer

42. Which one of the four regions above earth has the smallest height?
a) Stratosphere

b) Troposphere
c) Mesosphere
d) Thermosphere
Answer: b) Troposphere

43. Ozone layers are more profound at the:

a) Poles
b) Equator
c) Tropic of Cancer
d) Tropic of Capricorn
Answer: a) Poles

44. Which of the following components of the atmosphere has increased during the last 200
years?
a) Carbon dioxide
b) Nitrogen

c) Water vapour
d) Oxygen
Answer: a) Carbon dioxide

45. Scale used for recording weather conditions is known as:

a) Centigrade

b) Hygrometer
c) Opisometer
d) Hydrometer
Answer: a) Centigrade

46. At which of the following place, the weight of an object is maximum?

a) At Tropic of Cancer
b) At Tropic of Capricorn
c) At Equator
d) At poles
Answer: d) At poles

47. The final boundary between the Earth and outer space is called:
a) Magnetopause
b) Magnetosphere
c) Menopause
d) Ionosphere
Answer: a) Magnetopause

48. Which one of the following has the highest concentration of ions?
a) Thermosphere
b) Stratosphere
c) Exosphere
d) Troposphere

Answer: a) Thermosphere

49. A Stevenson screen is usually used in all of the following except in:
a) Rain gauge
b) Minimum thermometer
c) Wet and dry bulb thermometer
d) Maximum thermometer
Answer: a) Rain gauge

50. A line on the map which joins places having the same rainfall is called:
a) Isohel
b) Isotherm
c) Isobar
d) Isohyet
Answer: d) Isohyet

51. Equatorial lowland usually experiences:

a) Cold nights
b) Strong winds
c) Heavy thunder rain in the afternoon.
d) A large diurnal temperature range.

Answer: c) Heavy thunder rain in the afternoon.

52. The seasonal rainfall pattern of India is caused by:

a) The Himalayas blocking winds from interior Asia.
b) The tropical location of India.
c) The large annual range of temperature.

d) The monsoon winds operating over Southern Asia.

Answer: b) The tropical location of India.

53. 97% of the atmosphere lies within ______ km of the surface of the Earth.
a) 5 km)
b) 17 km
c) 20 km
d) 25 km
Answer: b) 17 km

54. Rotation of the Earth causes deflection of wind by:

a) Gravity force
b) Gradient force
c) Dynamic force
d) Coriolis force

Answer: d) Coriolis force

55. Conduction is a process that:

a) does not conduct heat to any of the two objects coming into contact.
b) conducts heat from the cooler to the warmer region.
c) conducts heat from the warmer to the cooler region until the two objects coming into contact
gets the same temperature.
d) None of the above.
Answer: c) conducts heat from the warmer to the cooler region until the two objects coming into
contact gets the same temperature.

56. Radiation is a process that:

a) generates heat in the atmosphere.
b) transfers all solar energy to the earth and space.

c) transfers all lunar energy to the earth surface

d) None of the above.
Answer: d) None of the above.
57. Summer season occurs on account of:
a) Horizontal rays of the sun
b) Vertical rays of the sun
c) Low angle of the sun

d) None of the above

Answer: a) Horizontal rays of the sun

58. What is latent energy?

a) It is thermal energy
b It is found in the form of stored energy

c) It is a hidden energy or invisible energy

d) None of the above
Answer: c) It is a hidden energy or invisible energy

59. What is convection?

a) It is a process that put hazard in the transfer of energy.

b) It is a process that involves the transfer of energy through the movement of air and water
masses
c) It is a subtle process of transferring solar energy
d) It is process non-existent in any region of temperature

Answer: b) It is a process that involves the transfer of energy through the movement of air and
water masses.

60. The composition of the atmosphere:

a) Remains relatively constant in the lower layers

b) Varies with latitudes
c) Varies with seasons
d) Varies from place to place
Answer: a) Remains relatively constant in the lower layers

61. Evaporation is the result of:

a) Loss of heat

b) Gain of heat
c) Generation of heat
d) None of these
Answer: b) Gain of heat

62. The atmospheric layer which reflects radio waves is called:

a) Ionosphere
b) Exosphere
c) Stratosphere
d) Thermosphere
Answer: a) Ionosphere

63. The most important component of the atmosphere which cause many weather phenomena is:
a) Water vapour
b) Nitrogen
c) Oxygen
d) Carbon dioxide
Answer: a) Water vapour

64. When is fog formed?

a) It is formed when various water droplets remain suspended in the air.
b) It is formed when the air mass is condensed on a solid surface of the earth.
c) It is formed when the condensation occurs below the freezing point.
d) None of the above.
Answer: a) It is formed when various water droplets remain suspended in the air.

65. Land masses get heated more quickly than the oceans, mainly because:

a) Vegetation land protects the land from direct sunlight.

b) Evaporation of water bodies cools the air.
c) Specific heat of water is much less than that of land
d) Specific heat of land is much less than that of water
Answer: d) Specific heat of land is much less than that of water

66. Select the correct sequence of the given processes regarding rainfall?
a) Unsaturated air, dew point, condensation, precipitation.
b) Unsaturated air, condensation, dew point, precipitation.
c) Dew point, precipitation, condensation, unsaturated air.
d) Dew point, condensation, unsaturated air, precipitation.
Answer: a) Unsaturated air, dew point, condensation, precipitation.

67. Which is the chief characteristic of wet and dry tropics?

a) Constant precipitation
b) Constant humidity
c) Constant cooling
d) Constant heating

Answer: d) Constant heating

68. Water vapour is turned into water droplets by the process of:
a) Condensation
b) Convection
c) Liquification
d) Evaporation
Answer: a) Condensation

69. The blueness of the sky is mainly due to:

a) Scattering of sunlight by air molecules
b) Absorption of blue light by the atmosphere
c) Presence of water vapour
d) Emission of blue light by air
Answer: a) Scattering of sunlight by air molecules

70. Which of the following is not a greenhouse gas?

a) Argon
b) Carbon dioxide
c) Methane
d) Nitrous oxide

Answer: a) Argon

71. The orientation of mountains to the prevailing wind affects:

a) Ocean currents
b) Movements of wind
c) Evaporation

d) Precipitation
Answer: d) Precipitation

72. Unequal heating of the Earth’s surface creates pressure gradients that result in:
a) Wind
b) Cyclone
c) Anticyclone
d) Pressure systems
Answer: a) Wind

73. The gas having the highest proportion in the air is:
a) Nitrogen
b) Oxygen
c) Hydrogen
d) Carbon dioxide

Answer: a) Nitrogen

74. The transfer of energy through matter from particle to particle is known as:
a) Conduction
b) Thermal anomaly
c) Radiation

d) Convection
Answer: a) Conduction

75. Which of the following is wrongly matched?

a) Stratosphere-Extends out to about 500 km.
b) Exosphere-Extends beyond the thermosphere hundreds of kilometers.

c) Thermosphere-Extends out to about 400 km

d) Mesosphere-Extends out to about 100 km.
Answer: a) Stratosphere-Extends out to about 500 km.

76. The difference in temperature between the warm, black side and the cooler white side causes
gasses to creep along the surface of the vanes known as:
a) Conduction creep
b) Nuclear creep
c) Thermal creep
d) Radiation creep

Answer: c) Thermal creep

77. The higher a place above the sea level:

a) The more often it is visited by typhoon.
b) The more unstable is its climate.
c) The warmer is its climate.

d) The cooler is its temperature.

Answer: d) The cooler is its temperature.

78. Air masses as an element of climate subsume the characteristics of:

a) Humidity
b) Stability

c) Temperature
d) All of the above.
Answer: d) All of the above.

79. The stormy climate of the mid-latitudes is a product of lying in the boundary zone of greatly
contrasting air masses called:
a) Tropical front
b) Subtropical front
c) Polar front
d) None of the above.

Answer: c) Polar front

80. Horse latitudes lie:
a) Between 50° and 60° latitude both north and south of the equator.
b) In the vicinity of 50° latitude both north and south of the equator.
c) In the vicinity of 30° latitude both north and south of the equator.

d) None of the above.

Answer: c) In the vicinity of 30° latitude both north and south of the equator.

Additional Question and Answers on Layers of the Atmosphere:

1. Which is the hottest layer of the atmosphere?

Answer: The thermosphere is the hottest layer of the atmosphere.

2. Which is the coldest layer of the atmosphere?

Answer: The mesosphere is the coldest layer of the atmosphere.

3. Which is the outermost part of the Earth’s atmosphere?

Answer: The exosphere is the outermost part of the Earth’s Atmosphere.

4. Which factor determines a new layer in the atmosphere?

Answer: The shift in Temperature determines a new layer in the atmosphere.
5. In which layer of the atmosphere is ozone layer found?
Answer: The ozone layer is found in the stratosphere.

6. In which layer of the atmosphere do planes fly?

Answer: Planes fly in the stratosphere due to less turbulence.

7. Which layer is the largest in the Earth?

Answer: The mantle is the largest layer of the Earth with a thickness of 2900 km.

8. Which layer is closest to Earth?

Answer: The Troposphere is the closet layer of the atmosphere.

9. Which layer is the farthest from the sun?

Answer: The exosphere is the most distant atmospheric region from Earth's surface.

10. Who discovered ozone hole?

Answer: Jonathan Shanklin together with Joe Farman and Brian G. Gardiner discovered the
"Ozone Hole" in the 1980s.