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The document discusses the scientific method's application in atmospheric science, emphasizing the importance of quantitative testing and laboratory studies despite the unique challenges posed by Earth's singular atmosphere. It highlights the role of numerical models in forecasting weather and understanding climate patterns, as well as the sun's energy as a primary driver of atmospheric behavior. Additionally, it provides an overview of the solar system and the temperature variations experienced on Earth.

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3 views

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The document discusses the scientific method's application in atmospheric science, emphasizing the importance of quantitative testing and laboratory studies despite the unique challenges posed by Earth's singular atmosphere. It highlights the role of numerical models in forecasting weather and understanding climate patterns, as well as the sun's energy as a primary driver of atmospheric behavior. Additionally, it provides an overview of the solar system and the temperature variations experienced on Earth.

Uploaded by

SBDU PDB
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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To be accepted, a hypothesis has to be shown to be correct through a series of quantitative

tests. In many areas of science, such testing is carried out in a laboratory, where it can be
replicated again and again. Studying the atmosphere, however, is somewhat different, because
Earth has only one atmosphere. Despite this limitation, scientists have made vast progress by
studying the physics and chemistry of air in the laboratory (for instance, the way in which
molecules absorb energy) and by extending those understandings to the atmosphere as a
whole. Observations using weather instruments allow us to quantify how the atmosphere
behaves and to determine whether a prediction is correct. If a particular kind of weather is
being studied, such as hurricanes or snowstorms, a field campaign can gather additional
observations to test specific hypotheses.

For more than 60 years, computers have given atmospheric scientists a tremendous boost.
The physical laws that control atmospheric behavior can be represented in software packages
known as numerical models. Forecasts can be made and tested many times over. The
atmosphere within a model can be used to depict weather conditions from the past and project
them into the future. When a model can accurately simulate past weather conditions, we can
have more confidence in its portrayal of tomorrow’s weather. Numerical models can also
provide valuable information about the types of weather and climate we may expect decades
from now.

1.1 Overview of Earth’s Atmosphere

The scientific method has not only illuminated our understanding of weather and climate
but also provided much information about the universe that surrounds us. The universe
contains billions ofgalaxies and each galaxy is made up of billions of stars. Stars arehot glowing
balls of gas that generate energy by converting hydrogen into helium near their centers. Our sun
is an average-sized star situated near the edge of the Milky Way galaxy. Revolving around the
sun are Earth and seven other planets. Our solar system comprises these planets, along with a
host of other material (comets, asteroids, meteors, dwarf planets, etc.).

Warmth for the planets is provided primarily by the sun’s energy. At an average distance
from the sun of nearly 150 million kilometers (km) or 93 million miles (mi), Earth intercepts only
a very small fraction of the sun’s total energy output. However, it is this radiant energy (or
radiation) that drives the atmosphere into the patterns of everyday wind and weather and
allows Earth to maintain an average surface temperature of about 15 °C (59 °F). Although this
temperature is mild, Earth experiences a wide range of temperatures, as readings can drop
below - 85 °C (- 121 °F) during a frigid Antarctic night and climb, during the day, to above 50
°C(122 °F) on the oppressively hot subtropical desert.

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