UPPER ATMOSPHERE Exosphere The farthest layer. 400-40,000 miles above Earth’s surface. Air dwindles to nothing as molecules drift into space.
Thermosphere Where the temperatures rise. 50-400 miles above Earth’s surface. Though the air is thin, it absorbs so much solar radiation that the temperature can reach 440 degrees Fahrenheit.
Next Steps: Since the fall, the club has been building more weather balloons to better understand the atmosphere. “We want to learn from our mistakes from the last one and gather more information,” Main said. “We learned that we need to do a lot of testing on all the electronics.” Two new balloons are set to launch at Celebrate NFA on Saturday, May 16. The first, a balloon like the original, is expected to capture video footage of the entire flight, send photos back live, and be recovered. The second balloon, a smaller “Pico” weather balloon will hopefully fly around the world, reporting its location and environmental data via Ham radio. In a new way, the journey of the club’s weather balloon contributes to NFA’s long tradition of reaching beyond its borders to explore the world.
MIDDLE ATMOSPHERE Mesosphere Where the protective ozone layer floats. 31-50 miles above Earth’s surface. Space debris begins to burn up as it enters the mesosphere.
Stratosphere Where the protective ozone layer floats. 10-31 miles above Earth’s surface.
NFA
LOWER ATMOSPHERE Troposphere Where weather forms - Up to 10 miles above Earth’s surface. Storms take place in the troposphere, which contains about 75 percent of the atmosphere.
EARTH
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