Knowra Mesosphere Mesosphere The atmospheric layer above the stratosphere and below the thermosphere, where temperatures generally decrease with altitude. Most meteoroids that enter Earth’s atmosphere ablate in this layer.
Atmospheric temperature : A measure of the thermal state of air, varying with altitude, location, and time. The mesosphere’s defining temperature trend is a decrease with altitude.
Earth's atmosphere : The envelope of gases surrounding Earth, organized by composition and changing physical properties. The mesosphere is one layer within this gaseous envelope.
Meteoroid : A small natural solid body traveling through space before entering a planetary atmosphere. Meteoroids encounter enough atmospheric particles in the mesosphere to heat and ablate.
Temperature inversion : A condition in which air temperature increases with altitude over a layer instead of decreasing. The mesosphere generally cools upward, unlike inversion layers with increasing temperature.
Stratopause : The boundary region between the stratosphere and mesosphere, near the stratosphere’s temperature maximum. It marks where the mesosphere’s temperature decline begins.
Troposphere : The lowest atmospheric layer, where most weather and nearly all atmospheric water vapor occur. It is the atmospheric layer beneath the stratosphere and mesosphere.
Meteor : The streak of light produced when a meteoroid heats and excites atmospheric gases during entry. Many visible meteors form as meteoroids ablate in the mesosphere.
Stratospheric temperature inversion : The increase of temperature with altitude through much of the stratosphere, driven by ozone absorption of ultraviolet radiation. It contrasts with the mesosphere’s temperature decrease with altitude.
Mesopause : The boundary between the mesosphere and thermosphere, usually the coldest region of Earth’s atmosphere. It marks the mesosphere’s upper limit and temperature minimum.
Stratosphere : The atmospheric layer above the troposphere, containing the ozone layer and warming with altitude. It directly underlies the mesosphere and helps define its lower boundary.
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