Regional scientific - practical conference schoolchildren
"Eureka"
Section of Physics and Aerospace
Atmospheric pressure and
people's well-being
Moshonkina Valentina
MKOU Kornilovskaya Secondary School
Bolotninsky district
Karmanova Natalya Grigorievna,
physics and mathematics teacher
first qualified category
Kornilovo 2013
Introduction. 3
Main part.
What is atmospheric pressure? From the history of study 4
atmospheric pressure.
Interesting Facts about atmospheric pressure. 5-6
What happens if atmospheric pressure decreases?
Atmospheric pressure and people's well-being. 6-9
Results of my research 10-11
III. Conclusion. 12
IV. Literature. 13
V. Applications. 14-17
I. Introduction.
When reporting on the weather on the radio, the announcers usually end by saying: atmospheric pressure 760 mmHg (or 749, or 754...). But how many people understand what this means and where weather forecasters get this data from? How is atmospheric pressure measured, how does it change and does it affect a person? What is weather sensitivity, and does it exist? How does a change in atmospheric pressure affect the well-being of a healthy or sick person? Which atmospheric pressure, low or high, is better tolerated by people? These are the questions I asked myself when starting this research.
I must say that this problem has been sufficiently studied, and on the Internet you can find many articles devoted to this topic, and where you can find answers to the questions I asked. These are articles describing the results of a web survey of people about the impact of weather changes on their well-being, articles devoted to the results scientific research on this issue, as well as articles devoted to labor protection of people whose work is associated with changes in atmospheric pressure.
I decided to conduct my research not just by interviewing people, but by simultaneously measuring blood pressure, since in hypertensive people the pressure is not always high, and in hypotensive people, on the contrary, it is not always low. Thus, establish a relationship between blood pressure in this moment, atmospheric pressure and human well-being. (Annex 1)
The research was carried out over 2 months (October, November 2009) and 55 people were the object of research; age from 13 to 70 years. These are mainly school employees (23 people) and students in grades 7–11 (24 people), and 8 elderly people were also involved in the research, these are the grandmothers of school students. (Appendix 4).
Probably my work will not bring anything new to the coverage of this problem, but it was interesting for me to do it.
II. Main part.
What is atmospheric pressure? From the history of the study of atmospheric pressure.
The existence of air has been known to man since ancient times. The Greek thinker Anaximenes, who lived in the 6th century BC, considered air to be the basis of all things. At the same time, air is something elusive, as if immaterial - “spirit”.
For the first time, the weight of air confused people in 1638, when the Duke of Tuscany’s idea to decorate the gardens of Florence with fountains failed - the water did not rise above 10.3 m. (Appendix 2). It turned out that atmospheric pressure can only balance a water column of this height.
The search for the reasons for the stubbornness of water and experiments with a heavier liquid - mercury, undertaken in 1643 by the Italian scientist Torricelli, led to the discovery of atmospheric pressure. Torricelli discovered that the height of the mercury column in his experiment did not depend either on the shape of the tube or on its inclination. At sea level, the height of the mercury column has always been about 760mm. The scientist suggested that the height of the liquid column is balanced by air pressure. Knowing the height of the column and the density of the liquid, you can determine the amount of atmospheric pressure. (Appendix 3)
The correctness of Torricelli's assumption was confirmed in 1648. Pascal's experience on Mount Pui de Dome. Pascal proved that a smaller column of air exerts less pressure. Due to the Earth's gravity and insufficient speed, air molecules cannot leave the near-Earth space. However, they do not fall on the surface of the Earth, but hover above it, because are in continuous thermal movement.
Due to thermal motion and the attraction of molecules to the Earth, their distribution in the atmosphere is uneven. With an atmospheric altitude of 2000-3000 km, 99% of its mass is concentrated in the lower (up to 30 km) layer. Air, like other gases, is highly compressible. Lower layers of the atmosphere as a result of pressure on them upper layers have big air density.
at sea level the average is 760 mm Hg = 1310 hPa or 1 atm. (1 atmosphere)
With altitude, air pressure and density decrease. At low altitudes, every 12 m of ascent reduces atmospheric pressure by 1 mm Hg. At high altitudes this pattern is broken. This happens because the height of the air column exerting pressure decreases as it rises. In addition, in the upper layers of the atmosphere the air is less dense.
An average-sized person is affected by atmospheric pressure pressure force near 150,000N. But we can cope with such a load, because... external atmospheric pressure is balanced fluid pressure inside our body.
2. Interesting facts about atmospheric pressure. What happens if atmospheric pressure decreases?
The pressure of gases inside the body will tend to ``equilibrate'' with external pressure. A very simple illustration: cups that are given to a patient. The air in them is heated, causing the gas density to decrease. The jar is quickly applied to the surface, and as the jar and the air in it cool, the human body in this place is drawn into the jar. Imagine such a jar around a person... But that’s not all. As you know, a person consists of at least 75% water. The boiling point of water at atmospheric pressure is 100 C. The boiling point strongly depends on pressure: the lower the pressure, the lower the boiling point. ...Already at a pressure of 0.4 atm. The boiling point of water is 28.64 0 C, which is significantly lower than the human body temperature; human blood will simply boil. About 15 years ago, at one of the institutes in Akademgorodok, the idea arose to try vacuum drying of meat. A large piece of meat was placed in a vacuum chamber and a sharp pumping began. The piece just exploded. After this experiment, it was quite difficult to scrape its results from the walls of the vacuum chamber.
How does a person tolerate different heights above sea level? 1-2 km is a safe, or indifferent zone, in which no physiological changes in organism. 2-4 km is a zone of full compensation: some disturbances in cardiovascular activity quickly disappear thanks to the mobilization of the body. 4-5 km – zone of incomplete compensation: deterioration of general well-being. 6–8 km – critical zone: serious functional changes in the body’s vital activity. More than 8 km is a lethal zone: a person can stay at this altitude without breathing apparatus for only 3 minutes. At an altitude of 16 km - 9 s after which death occurs.
3.Atmospheric pressure and people’s well-being.
We often hear complaints about poor health due to changing weather and changes in atmospheric pressure. I wonder to what extent these complaints are true? real basis. I set myself the task of finding out whether there is a connection between these phenomena. If this connection exists, how does it relate to a person's blood pressure, and is there a connection with age.
I am not a pioneer on this issue. You can find articles on this topic on the Internet. So Alexey Moshchevikin
published the results of his research on the influence of atmospheric pressure on people’s well-being in February 2004, but he conducted his research solely on the basis of a survey of people visiting the Internet, relying only on people’s subjective feelings. The conclusion obtained by Moshchevikin as a result of his research:
IN 
Contrary to popular belief, people’s well-being depends little (or not at all) on such a meteorological parameter as atmospheric pressure (at least under conditions of non-extreme values).
Percentage number of people who felt unwell relative to the total number in each category
On one of the Internet sites there is an article devoted to the influence of not only atmospheric pressure, but also humidity and air temperature on well-being, and these studies are, in our opinion, more serious. The authors believe that one in three adults react to sudden weather changes. Moreover, women experience this twice as often as men. People who feel discomfort from weather fluctuations magnetic storms, solar activity, are called meteolabile (meteosensitive). In women, due to sudden weather changes, good health can easily change to bad. There is even the science of biometeorology, which deals with these issues.
In an article by folk healer Nikolai Ivanovich Maznev
it talks about the reasons that cause deterioration in well-being when pressure changes. When pressure decreases, due to the difference between atmospheric pressure and pressure inside the body, gases in the stomach and intestines expand, which push up the diaphragm, making breathing difficult, and also cause abdominal pain. The blood vessels of the skin and mucous membranes dilate, which leads to nosebleeds. Pain in the ears appears due to protrusion of the eardrum outward, which disappears after equalizing the pressure on both sides; This is facilitated by yawning and swallowing, which create conditions for the middle ear to communicate with the outside air through the Eustachian tube. Due to lack of oxygen, shortness of breath, dizziness,
Staying in conditions of high atmospheric pressure is almost no different from normal conditions. Only at very high pressure is there a slight reduction in pulse rate and a decrease in the minimum blood pressure. Breathing becomes rarer but deeper. Hearing and sense of smell decrease slightly, the voice becomes muffled, a feeling of slightly numb skin appears, dry mucous membranes, etc. However, all these phenomena are relatively easily tolerated.
More unfavorable phenomena are observed during the period of changes in atmospheric pressure - increase (compression) and especially its decrease (decompression) to normal. The slower the change in pressure occurs, the better and without adverse consequences the human body adapts to it.
With reduced atmospheric pressure, there is increased and deepening of breathing, increased heart rate (their strength is weaker), a slight drop in blood pressure, and changes in the blood are also observed in the form of an increase in the number of red blood cells. At the core adverse influence low atmospheric pressure affects the body oxygen starvation. It is due to the fact that with a decrease in atmospheric pressure, the partial pressure of oxygen also decreases, therefore, with the normal functioning of the respiratory and circulatory organs, less oxygen enters the body. IN normal conditions annual fluctuations on the earth's surface atmospheric air do not exceed 20-30 mm, and the daily allowance is 4-5 mm. Healthy people tolerate them easily and unnoticed. But some patients are very sensitive even to such minor changes pressure. Thus, with a decrease in blood pressure, people suffering from rheumatism experience pain in the affected joints; in patients with hypertension, their health worsens and attacks of angina are observed. In people with increased nervous excitability, sudden changes in pressure cause feelings of fear, worsening mood and sleep.
It must be said that the well-being of a person who has lived in a certain area for a long time is normal, i.e. the characteristic pressure should not cause any particular deterioration in well-being.
Meteosensitivity is observed in 35-70% of patients with various diseases. Thus, every second patient with diseases of the cardiovascular system feels the weather. Headache, weakness, fatigue on the eve of a weather change worry almost every second person, especially older people. Significant atmospheric changes can cause overstrain and disruption of adaptation mechanisms. Then oscillatory processes in organism - biological rhythms become distorted and chaotic.
And so, for a healthy person, meteorological fluctuations, as a rule, are not dangerous. Nevertheless, people who do not feel the weather still exhibit reactions to it, although sometimes they are not consciously aware of it. They must be taken into account, for example, among transport drivers. At sudden change weather conditions make it more difficult for them to concentrate. Hence, the number of accidents may increase. As a result of illnesses (flu, sore throat, pneumonia, joint diseases, etc.) or fatigue, the body's resistance and reserves decrease
4. Results of my research.
Measurements were not taken every day, but only on those days when the pressure changed noticeably. The results of blood pressure measurements and the survey were entered into tables (Appendix 4,5,6), in which age, current blood pressure, health (very poor, worse than usual, normal, excellent), as well as atmospheric pressure on a given day were noted . If people felt unwell, they were asked whether this was due to changes in the weather or other reasons.
In our area, the most common atmospheric pressure is about 740 mmHg. More high pressure happens rarely, so the pressure
750 mmHg I consider it as elevated (760 mm Hg is very rare) and 730 mmHg as reduced.
Studies have shown that most of those examined feel normal at different atmospheric pressures, regardless of blood pressure. What can be observed in the following table and diagram.
| Low atmospheric pressure | Normal atmospheric pressure | High atmospheric pressure |
|
| Adults. | |||
Looking at the data, we can conclude that the younger generation feels better at any atmospheric pressure, which is to be expected, since a young body is less burdened with diseases than an adult. However, it is clear that with low blood pressure both adults and children feel somewhat worse than with normal and high blood pressure. It is also clear that with normal pressure everyone feels a little better: in children it approaches 100%, and in adults it approaches 80%, which corresponds to the conclusions in the article by Nikolai Maznev.
As for the reaction to changes in atmospheric pressure (weather), 63.6% of respondents responded that this affects their well-being, of which the vast majority have problems with blood pressure. Moreover, hypertensive people believe that they feel better at high atmospheric pressure, and hypotensive people feel better at low pressure.
Let's consider the well-being of hypertensive and hypotensive patients at different atmospheric pressures.
| Low atmospheric pressure | Normal atmospheric pressure | High atmospheric pressure |
|
| Hypertensive patients. | |||
| Hypotonics. | |||
| Healthy. |
Here, hypertensives and hypotensives mean people who had high or low blood pressure on a given day, and healthy people with normal blood pressure.
Analyzing the diagram, we can say that hypertensive patients have the most problems with well-being. But, probably, the reason for this is not only the weather, but also health problems in general, because... and at normal atmospheric pressure their health is not very good. As for hypotensive patients, the results obtained seem doubtful to me, because There were very few of them among those examined.
III. Conclusion.
Analyzing the above, we can do the following conclusions. There is some weather sensitivity of people, and it depends to a greater extent People with certain diseases are susceptible, in particular problems with blood pressure. But we see that people with normal blood pressure are also sensitive to changes in atmospheric pressure. Low blood pressure is less tolerated, but also high blood pressure there is some deterioration in health. Manifestations of meteosensitivity depend on the initial state of the body, age, the presence of any disease and its nature, the microclimate in which a person lives, and the degree of his acclimatization to it. Meteosensitivity is more often observed in people who rarely visit fresh air sedentary mental labor who do not engage in physical education. For a healthy person, meteorological fluctuations are usually not dangerous. . More often, meteosensitivity is observed in persons with a weak (melancholic) and strong unbalanced (choleric) type nervous system. In people of a strong, balanced type (sanguine people), meteosensitivity manifests itself only when the body is weakened. We are not able to influence the weather. But to help your body survive this difficult period It's not difficult at all. If significant deterioration is predicted weather conditions, and therefore sudden changes in atmospheric pressure, first of all you should not panic, calm down, and reduce physical activity as much as possible.
I believe that the results of my study are consistent with the results of the studies described in the articles I mentioned above.
Literature.
1. E.K. Kiryanova. "Atmosphere pressure". Internet. Festival of pedagogical ideas.
2. Atmospheric pressure. From the history of discovery. Internet. www.townsketch.
3. N.I. Maznev. Influence environment. Air pressure and body condition. Internet. www.maznev.ru
4. Alexey Moshchevikin. The connection between blood pressure and well-being. Results of web testing. Internet. thermo.karelia.ru/projects/p_health_results.
5. Atmospheric pressure, wind, sun, pressure, humidity. Internet www.propogodu.ru/2/491/
6.Atmospheric pressure. Occupational Safety and Health. Internet. www.cultinfo.ru/fulltext/1/001/008/080/242.htm
7. Weather sensitivity and diseases associated with atmospheric pressure. Internet. humbio.ru/Humbio/prof_d/00008499.htm
8. The influence of atmospheric pressure on human well-being. Internet.
www.baroma.ru/atmdav.html
Annex 1
Appendix 2
Appendix 3
Appendix -5. Sample tables with measurement and survey data.
A person depends on everything that surrounds him. This also applies to atmospheric pressure. In this article we will understand what normal air pressure is and how its changes can affect a person’s condition.
What it is?
First of all, you need to understand the concepts. So, air pressure in science is most often called atmospheric pressure. The atmosphere itself is the shell of the Earth, which consists of air and “stretches” several thousand kilometers in height. The following facts will be interesting:
- If the Earth had no atmosphere, the planet would be as dead as the Moon. During the day the temperature here would be +130 °C, at night - minus 150 °C.
- Pascal calculated that the weight of the atmosphere is equal to a copper ball with a diameter of 10 km, which is approximately five quadrillion tons.
- The earth's surface itself, as well as all the bodies that are located on it, experience atmospheric pressure, that is, the pressure of the air thickness on them.
- The atmosphere is by nature a mixture large quantity gases, the most basic of which are: nitrogen - about 78%, oxygen - about 20%, argon - less than 1%, other gases (carbon dioxide, neon, helium, krypton, etc.) - in very small quantities.
The discovery of this fact
Before understanding what the normal air pressure on a person is, it is worth considering how it was discovered this phenomenon, i.e. how scientists learned that atmospheric pressure exists. Everyone knows that air has its own weight (this can be easily verified experimentally by pumping the air out of a balloon and seeing that it has become lighter). For the first time, humanity found itself in confusion when, back in the 17th century, the Duke of Tuscany wanted to decorate his gardens with fountains, but he failed because the water simply refused to rise to a height of more than 10 meters. After this, the search began for the reasons for this fact, which lasted for five long years. And only in 1643, the scientist Torricelli, thanks to experiments with water and mercury, discovered atmospheric pressure. How did this happen? When the thickness of the tube and its inclination changed, the height of the mercury column did not change. And at sea level it was always about 760 mm Hg. Art. (this, by the way, is the normal air pressure, i.e., the atmosphere, at earth's surface and human). The scientist suggested that the height of the column is balanced by air pressure. Thus, knowing the density of the liquid and the height of the column, it is possible to calculate the atmospheric pressure. The truth this assumption was confirmed by Pascal with the well-known experiment on the Puig de Dome mountain.
About pressure
Air molecules are always in thermal motion. And, thanks to this fact (as well as gravity), their distribution in the earth’s atmosphere is uneven. The lower layers of the atmosphere (since pressure from the upper layers occurs on them) has higher density air. It is also worth mentioning in what units normal pressure is measured - mmHg. Art., i.e. in millimeters of mercury. As for the numbers, it is 760 mm Hg. Art. (at sea level), which is equal to 1013 hPa. It is important to say that with a change in altitude, density and pressure decrease. If we talk about low altitudes, then every 12 meters the pressure decreases by 1 mmHg. Art. If we talk about high altitudes, this pattern is violated.
About units
It is also worth considering what normal atmospheric pressure will be in various systems measurements. This information can often be useful. Once again about the norm: normal atmospheric pressure is a height of the mercury column of 760 mm at a temperature of 0 ° C, at a latitude of 45 ° above sea level. What will be the other indicators:
- GHS system: 1013.25 mb.
- SI system: 101 325 Pa.
Interesting facts about the atmosphere and its pressure
- If the atmosphere did not rotate together with planet Earth around its axis, then hurricanes would constantly appear on the surface of our planet.
- If the Earth’s atmosphere were to disappear, then a temperature of about 170 °C would be established on its surface, all the water would freeze, and the surface of the planet would be covered with an ice crust. There would also be complete silence, since sound does not travel in emptiness. The sky would become black, since its color depends on the air (there would be no twilight, dawn, etc.), and the stars would shine around the clock. And the worst thing is: all life on the planet would die immediately.
About portability
Having figured out what normal atmospheric pressure is, it is also worth talking about how it affects a person.
- 1.5-2 km. So, if someone decides to climb to a height of one and a half to two kilometers (for example, Mount Ai-Petri), everything will be fine. This is the so-called indifferent, i.e. safe, zone, where changes in pressure on the human body are so insignificant that they practically do not affect his condition.
- 2-4 km. If there is a desire to climb to the height of this range, there will already be some changes in the state of the human body. Disturbances may occur in the cardiovascular system and sensory organs. However, if a person is physically healthy, the ailment will quickly disappear and the body will adapt.
- 4-5 km. If someone has a desire to climb Mount Elbrus or Klyuchevskaya Sopka, one should expect a rapid deterioration in general well-being.
- 6-8 km. These heights are called the critical zone: already here a person experiences quite serious functional disorders in the body.
- More than 8 km. If you want to climb to the very height of Mount Chomolungma, you should remember that for humans this is a deadly zone. You can stay there without a special breathing apparatus for no more than three minutes.
- More than 16 km. You can stay at this altitude without special breathing equipment for no more than 9 seconds, after which immediate death will occur.
Why are measurements needed?
When considering the topic “normal air pressure”, some people may think: “Why do we need these measurements? Where are they used? So, first of all, changes in atmospheric pressure are important for determining weather changes. Also, changes in barometric pressure can tell people that their health may be changing.
About the impact on humans
If healthy man for a long time lives in one place, minor fluctuations in atmospheric pressure most often will not cause discomfort. However, if the pressure increases significantly, this causes an increase in heart rate, as well as a slight decrease in the minimum blood pressure. Breathing also becomes more rare, but quite deep. At the same time, the sense of smell and hearing decreases, the voice may become “deaf,” dry mucous membranes and numbness of the skin may appear. If the change in pressure is gradual, the person will endure all this quite normally, without any particular losses. If a sharp jump occurs, the body may react more “severely” to it. What will happen to the human body if normal pressure decreases? There will be increased and deepening of breathing, and the heartbeat will accelerate (however, the force of the blow will weaken). Also, a consequence of low blood pressure is oxygen starvation of the body. What to do if it is simply impossible to influence weather changes? So, if a person knows that he does not tolerate fluctuations in atmospheric pressure, he must definitely monitor the weather forecasts. And if such unpleasant changes are approaching, you need to try to give up on “difficult” days. physical activity, freeing your body from overwork as much as possible. Well, and, of course, you can seek help from a doctor who will prescribe auxiliary medications.
The atmosphere is one of the most important components of our planet. It is she who “shelters” people from harsh conditions outer space, such as solar radiation And space debris. However, many facts about the atmosphere are unknown to most people.
1. True color of the sky
Although it's hard to believe, the sky is actually purple. When light enters the atmosphere, air and water particles absorb the light, scattering it. In this case, most of all dissipates purple That's why people see blue skies.
2. An exclusive element in the Earth's atmosphere
As many remember from school, the Earth's atmosphere consists of approximately 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen and small amounts of argon, carbon dioxide and other gases. But few people know that our atmosphere is the only one so far discovered by scientists (besides comet 67P) that has free oxygen. Because oxygen is a highly reactive gas, it often reacts with other chemicals in space. Its pure form on Earth makes the planet habitable.
3. White stripe in the sky
Surely, some people have sometimes wondered why a jet plane remains in the sky white stripe. These white trails, known as contrails, form when hot, humid exhaust gases from a plane's engine mix with cooler outside air. Water vapor from the exhaust freezes and becomes visible.
4. Main layers of the atmosphere
The Earth's atmosphere consists of five main layers, which make possible life on the planet. The first of these, the troposphere, extends from sea level to an altitude of about 17 km at the equator. Most of weather phenomena happens exactly in it.
5. Ozone layer
The next layer of the atmosphere, the stratosphere, reaches an altitude of approximately 50 km at the equator. It contains ozone layer, which protects people from dangerous ultraviolet rays. Even though this layer is above the troposphere, it may actually be warmer due to the energy absorbed from the sun's rays. Most jet planes and weather balloons fly in the stratosphere. Airplanes can fly faster in it because they are less affected by gravity and friction. Weather balloons can provide a better picture of storms, most of which occur lower in the troposphere.6. Mesosphere
The mesosphere is the middle layer, extending to a height of 85 km above the surface of the planet. Its temperature hovers around -120 °C. Most meteors that enter the Earth's atmosphere burn up in the mesosphere. The last two layers that extend into space are the thermosphere and exosphere.
7. Disappearance of the atmosphere
The Earth most likely lost its atmosphere several times. When the planet was covered in oceans of magma, massive interstellar objects crashed into it. These impacts, which also formed the Moon, may have formed the planet's atmosphere for the first time.
8. If there were no atmospheric gases...
Without the various gases in the atmosphere, the Earth would be too cold for human existence. water vapor, carbon dioxide and other atmospheric gases absorb heat from the sun and "distribute" it across the planet's surface, helping to create a habitable climate.
9. Formation of the ozone layer
The notorious (and essential) ozone layer was created when oxygen atoms reacted with ultraviolet light from the sun to form ozone. It is ozone that absorbs most harmful radiation Sun. Despite its importance, the ozone layer was formed relatively recently after enough life arose in the oceans to release into the atmosphere the amount of oxygen needed to create a minimum concentration of ozone
10. Ionosphere
The ionosphere is so called because high-energy particles from space and the sun help form ions, creating an "electric layer" around the planet. When there were no satellites, this layer helped reflect radio waves.
11. Acid rain
Acid rain, which destroys entire forests and devastates aquatic ecosystems, is formed in the atmosphere when sulfur dioxide or nitrogen oxide particles mix with water vapor and fall to the ground as rain. These chemical compounds They are also found in nature: sulfur dioxide is produced during volcanic eruptions, and nitrogen oxide is produced during lightning strikes.
12. Lightning power
Lightning is so powerful that just one bolt can heat the surrounding air up to 30,000 °C. The rapid heating causes an explosive expansion of nearby air, which can be heard as sound wave called thunder.
Aurora Borealis and Aurora Australis (northern and southern auroras) are caused by ion reactions occurring in the fourth level of the atmosphere, the thermosphere. When highly charged particles solar wind collide with air molecules above magnetic poles planets, they glow and create magnificent light shows.
14. Sunsets
Sunsets often look like the sky is on fire as small atmospheric particles scatter the light, reflecting it in orange and yellow hues. The same principle underlies the formation of rainbows.
In 2013, scientists discovered that tiny microbes can survive many kilometers above the Earth's surface. At an altitude of 8-15 km above the planet, microbes were discovered that destroy organic chemical substances, which float in the atmosphere, “feeding” on them.
Adherents of the theory of the apocalypse and various other horror stories will be interested in learning about.
The atmosphere is what makes life possible on Earth. We receive the very first information and facts about the atmosphere back in primary school. In high school, we become more familiar with this concept in geography lessons.
Concept of earth's atmosphere
Not only the Earth has an atmosphere, but also other celestial bodies. That's what they call it gas shell, surrounding planets. The composition of this gas layer different planets is significantly different. Let's look at the basic information and facts about otherwise called air.
Its most important component is oxygen. Some people mistakenly think that the earth's atmosphere consists entirely of oxygen, but in fact, air is a mixture of gases. It contains 78% nitrogen and 21% oxygen. The remaining one percent includes ozone, argon, carbon dioxide, and water vapor. Even though the percentage of these gases is small, they perform important function- absorb a significant part of the solar radiant energy, thereby preventing the luminary from turning all life on our planet into ashes. The properties of the atmosphere change depending on altitude. For example, at an altitude of 65 km, nitrogen is 86% and oxygen is 19%.
Composition of the Earth's atmosphere
- Carbon dioxide necessary for plant nutrition. It appears in the atmosphere as a result of the process of respiration of living organisms, rotting, and combustion. Its absence in the atmosphere would make the existence of any plants impossible.
- Oxygen- a vital component of the atmosphere for humans. Its presence is a condition for the existence of all living organisms. It makes up about 20% of total volume atmospheric gases.
- Ozone is a natural absorber of solar ultraviolet radiation, which has a detrimental effect on living organisms. Most of it forms a separate layer of the atmosphere - the ozone screen. IN Lately human activity leads to the fact that it begins to gradually collapse, but since it is of great importance, it is being carried out active work for its preservation and restoration.
- water vapor determines air humidity. Its content may vary depending on various factors: air temperature, territorial location, season. At low temperatures there is very little water vapor in the air, maybe less than one percent, and at high temperatures its amount reaches 4%.
- In addition to all of the above, the composition earth's atmosphere always present a certain percentage hard and liquid impurities . This is soot, ash, sea salt, dust, water drops, microorganisms. They can get into the air both naturally and anthropogenically.
Layers of the atmosphere
And temperature, and density, and high-quality composition air is not the same different heights. Because of this, it is customary to distinguish different layers of the atmosphere. Each of them has its own characteristics. Let's find out what layers of the atmosphere are distinguished:
- Troposphere - this layer of the atmosphere is closest to the Earth's surface. Its height is 8-10 km above the poles and 16-18 km in the tropics. 90% of all water vapor in the atmosphere is found here, so active education clouds Also in this layer processes such as air (wind) movement, turbulence, and convection are observed. Temperatures range from +45 degrees at midday in the warm season in the tropics to -65 degrees at the poles.
- The stratosphere is the second most distant layer of the atmosphere. Located at an altitude of 11 to 50 km. In the lower layer of the stratosphere the temperature is approximately -55; moving away from the Earth it rises to +1˚С. This region is called an inversion and is the boundary of the stratosphere and mesosphere.
- The mesosphere is located at an altitude of 50 to 90 km. Temperature on her lower limit- about 0, at the top it reaches -80...-90 ˚С. Meteorites entering the Earth's atmosphere completely burn up in the mesosphere, causing airglows to occur here.
- The thermosphere is approximately 700 km thick. In this layer of the atmosphere there arise northern lights. They appear due to the influence cosmic radiation and radiation coming from the Sun.
- The exosphere is the zone of air dispersion. Here the concentration of gases is small and they gradually escape into interplanetary space.
The boundary between the earth's atmosphere and outer space The line is considered to be 100 km. This line is called the Karman line.
Atmospheric pressure
When listening to the weather forecast, we often hear barometric pressure readings. But what does atmospheric pressure mean, and how can it affect us?
We figured out that air consists of gases and impurities. Each of these components has its own weight, which means that the atmosphere is not weightless, as was believed until the 17th century. Atmospheric pressure is the force with which all layers of the atmosphere press on the surface of the Earth and on all objects.
Scientists carried out complex calculations and proved that one square meter area the atmosphere presses with a force of 10,333 kg. Means, human body exposed to air pressure, the weight of which is 12-15 tons. Why don't we feel this? It is our internal pressure that saves us, which balances the external. You can feel the pressure of the atmosphere while on an airplane or high in the mountains, since the atmospheric pressure at altitude is much less. In this case, physical discomfort, blocked ears, and dizziness are possible.
A lot can be said about the surrounding atmosphere. We know many interesting facts about her, and some of them may seem surprising:
- The weight of the earth's atmosphere is 5,300,000,000,000,000 tons.
- It promotes sound transmission. At an altitude of more than 100 km, this property disappears due to changes in the composition of the atmosphere.
- The movement of the atmosphere is provoked by uneven heating of the Earth's surface.
- A thermometer is used to determine the air temperature, and a barometer is used to determine the pressure of the atmosphere.
- The presence of an atmosphere saves our planet from 100 tons of meteorites every day.
- The composition of the air was fixed for several hundred million years, but began to change with the onset of rapid industrial activity.
- The atmosphere is believed to extend upward to a height of 3000 km.
The importance of the atmosphere for humans
The physiological zone of the atmosphere is 5 km. At an altitude of 5000 m above sea level, a person begins to experience oxygen starvation, which is expressed in a decrease in his performance and deterioration in well-being. This shows that a person cannot survive in a space where there is no this amazing mixture of gases.
All information and facts about the atmosphere only confirm its importance for people. Thanks to its presence, it became possible to develop life on Earth. Already today, having assessed the scale of harm that humanity is capable of causing through its actions to the life-giving air, we should think about further measures to preserve and restore the atmosphere.
Many people in school years They thought physics was a boring subject. But this is not true at all, because in real life everything happens precisely thanks to this science. At this time natural science You can look not only from the side of solving problems and creating formulas. Physics also studies the Universe in which man lives, and therefore living without knowing the rules of this Universe becomes uninteresting.
1. As you know from textbooks, water has no shape, but water still has its own shape. This is a ball.
2.Depending on weather conditions, altitude Eiffel Tower can fluctuate by 12 centimeters. In hot weather, beams heat up to 40 degrees and under the influence high temperatures expand, which changes the height of the building.
3.To feel weak currents, physicist Vasily Petrov had to remove the top layer of epithelium on the tip of his finger.
4.To understand the nature of vision, Isaac Newton inserted a probe into his eye.
5. The common shepherd's whip is considered the first device to break the sound barrier.
6.Can be seen x-ray radiation and a visible glow if you unfold the tape in a vacuum space.
7.Einstein, known to everyone, was a poor student.
8.The body is not a good conductor of current.
9.The most serious branch of physics is considered nuclear.
10. The most real nuclear reactor acted 2 billion years ago on the territory of Oklo. The reaction of the reactor continued for approximately 100,000 years and only when the uranium vein was depleted did it end.
11. The temperature on the surface of the Sun is 5 times lower than the temperature of lightning.
12. A drop of rain weighs more than a mosquito.
13. Insects that fly are oriented during the flight only towards the light of the Moon or the Sun.
14. The spectrum is formed at the moment when Sun rays pass through droplets in the air.
15. Fluidity formed due to stress is characteristic of glaciers of large ice.
16. Light propagates more slowly in a transparent medium than in a vacuum.
17. There are no two snowflakes with the same pattern.
18.When ice forms, crystal cell begins to lose salt content, which causes the formation of icy and salty water at some points in the downdrafts.
19. For his experiments, physicist Jean-Antoine Nollet used people as a material.
20. Without using a corkscrew, you can open a bottle by leaning a newspaper against the wall.
21.To escape from a falling elevator, you need to take a “lying down” position, while occupying the maximum floor area. This will distribute the impact force evenly throughout the body.
22.Air is not directly heated by the Sun.
23. Due to the fact that the Sun emits light in all ranges, it has White color, although it appears yellow.
24. Sound travels faster where the medium is denser.
25. The noise of Niagara Falls is equivalent to the noise of a factory floor.
26.Water is capable of conducting electricity only with the help of ions that dissolve in it.
27.The maximum density of water is achieved at a temperature of 4 degrees.
28. Almost all oxygen in the atmosphere is of biological origin, but before the emergence of photosynthetic bacteria, the atmosphere was considered oxygen-free.
29.The first engine was a machine called aeolopile, which was created by the Greek scientist Heron of Alexandria.
30. 100 years after Nikola Tesla created the first radio-controlled ship, similar toys appeared on sale.
31.The Nobel Prize was prohibited from being received in Nazi Germany.
32.Short-wave components solar spectrum propagate in the air more strongly than long-wavelength ones.
33. At a temperature of 20 degrees, water in the pipeline, which contains methane, can freeze.
34.The only one freely found in natural environment the substance is water.
35.The Sun has the most water. The water there is in the form of steam.
36. It is not the water molecule itself that conducts the current, but the ions contained in it.
37.Only distilled water is a dielectric.
38.Each bowling ball has the same volume, but their mass is different.
39.B water space You can observe the process of “sonoluminescence” - the transformation of sound into light.
40.The electron was discovered as a particle by English physicist Joseph John Thompson in 1897.
41.Speed electric current equals the speed of light.
42.By connecting ordinary headphones to the microphone input, they can be used as a microphone.
43.Even with very strong wind in the mountains clouds can hang motionless. This happens because the wind moves air masses a certain flow or wave, but at the same time various obstacles flow around.
44. There are no blue or green pigments in the shell of the human eye.
45.To be able to look through glass that has a matte surface, you should stick a piece of transparent tape on it.
46.At a temperature of 0 degrees, water in in good condition begins to turn into ice.
47. In the Guinness beer drink, you can notice how the bubbles go down the walls of the glass instead of going up. This occurs because the bubbles in the center of the glass rise faster and push the liquid down at the rim with stronger viscous friction.
48. First time phenomenon electric arc was described by Russian scientist Vasily Petrov in 1802.
49.The Newtonian viscosity of a liquid depends on the nature and temperature. But if the viscosity also depends on the velocity gradient, then it is called non-Newtonian.
50.In the freezer hot water will freeze faster than cold.
51. In 8.3 minutes, photons in outer space capable of reaching Earth.
52.About 3500 planets earth type open today.
53.All objects have the same falling speed.
54.If a mosquito is on the ground, then a drop of rain can kill it.
55.All objects that surround a person consist of atoms.
56.Glass is not considered a solid because it is a liquid.
57.Liquid, gaseous and solids They always expand when heated.
58.Lightning strikes approximately 6,000 times per minute.
59.If hydrogen burns in the air, water is formed.
60. Light has weight, but has no mass.
61. The moment a person strikes a match against a box, the temperature of the match head rises to 200 degrees.
62. During the process of boiling water, its molecules move at a speed of 650 meters per second.
63. At the tip of the needle in a sewing machine, pressure develops up to 5000 atmospheres.
64. There is a physicist in outer space who received an award for the most ridiculous discovery in science. This is Andrey Geim from Holland, who in 2000 was awarded for studying the levitation of frogs.
65. Gasoline does not have a specific freezing point.
66.Granite conducts sound 10 times faster than air.
67.White color reflects light, and black attracts it.
68. By adding sugar to water, the egg will not drown in it.
69.Clean snow will melt more slowly than dirty snow.
70. A magnet will not act on stainless steel because it does not have different proportions of nickel that interfere with the iron atoms.