Geography (AS)·Physical geography · Atmospheric processes · NSSCAS 1.6a
Atmosphere structure, heating & energy budgets
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Cut the sky into its four layers, then follow the Sun's energy in and out: how insolation heats the ground and the ground heats the air, why clouds cool the day and warm the night, how the global and local energy budgets balance, and the difference between latent and sensible heat — all set against Namibia's clear desert skies.
What you'll learn in this lesson
By the end you should be able to (NSSCAS Geography (AS) 1.6a):
- name and describe the vertical structure of the atmosphere with reference to Troposphere, Stratosphere, Mesosphere and Thermosphere
- explain how the atmosphere is heated by insolation including the effect of cloud cover on the earth's heat energy budget
- describe and explain the Earth (global) energy budget
- explain local energy budgets in terms of input and output analysis with reference to the daytime and night time energy model
- draw a fully labelled diagram to show the 'day/night time model' of radiation balance
- distinguish between latent heat and sensible heat transfers
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Mr Robert and Mike talk through the whole topic — with the figure and working drawn live.