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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 (7.5 mi; 39,000 ft) above Earth's surface to the stratopause at an altitude of about 50 to 55 km (31 to 34 mi; 164,000 to 180,000 ft).
Diagram showing the five primary layers of the Earth's atmosphere: exosphere, thermosphere, mesosphere, stratosphere, and troposphere. The layers are not to scale. The stratosphere (/ ˈ s t r æ t ə ˌ s f ɪər,-t oʊ-/) is the second-lowest layer of the atmosphere of Earth, located above the troposphere and below the mesosphere.
The troposphere is the lowest of the four layers and extends from the surface of the Earth to about 11 km (6.8 mi) into the atmosphere, where the tropopause (the boundary between the troposphere stratosphere) is located. The width of the troposphere can vary depending on latitude: for example, the troposphere is thicker in the tropics (about 16 ...
The layers are to scale. From the Earth's surface to the top of the stratosphere (50km) is just under 1% of Earth's radius. The exosphere is a thin, atmosphere-like volume surrounding a planet or natural satellite where molecules are gravitationally bound to that body, but where the density is so low that the molecules are essentially collision ...
The five components of the climate system all interact. They are the atmosphere, the hydrosphere, the cryosphere, the lithosphere and the biosphere. [1]: 1451 Earth's climate system is a complex system with five interacting components: the atmosphere (air), the hydrosphere (water), the cryosphere (ice and permafrost), the lithosphere (earth's upper rocky layer) and the biosphere (living things).
The troposphere is the lowest layer of the atmosphere. This extends from the planetary surface to the bottom of the stratosphere. The troposphere contains 75–80% of the mass of the atmosphere, [9] and is the atmospheric layer wherein the weather occurs; the height of the troposphere varies between 17 km at the equator and 7.0 km at the poles.
As a result, it is the least-understood part of the atmosphere, resulting in the humorous moniker ignorosphere. [20] [21] The presence of red sprites and blue jets (electrical discharges or lightning within the lower mesosphere), noctilucent clouds, and density shears within this poorly understood layer are of current scientific interest.
Earth's atmosphere has no definite boundary, gradually becoming thinner and fading into outer space. [219] Three-quarters of the atmosphere's mass is contained within the first 11 km (6.8 mi) of the surface; this lowest layer is called the troposphere. [220] Energy from the Sun heats this layer, and the surface below, causing expansion of the air.