GEOG112 - Assignment 2 Name Spring 2019 18 pts possible Site A Site B Site C Temp ( C) Altitude (km) Temp ( C) Altitude (km) Temp ( C) Altitude (km) 24 0 30 0 15 0 10 1 18 1 4 1 14 2 14 2-3 2 9 3 8 3-7 3 0 4 6 4-14 4-13 5 3 5-27 5-3 6 0 6-35 6-22 8-6 8-49 8-33 10-11 10-62 10-42 12-18 12-62 12-57 14-25 14-61 14-57 16-34 16-59 16-57 18-42 18-50 18-56 20-44 20-46 20-55 22-44 22-41 22-53 24-43 24-39 24-51 26-42 26-36 26-48 28-41 28-32 28-45 30-40 30-29 30-43 32-39 32-27 32-39 34-35 34-22 34-34 36-28 36-20 36-28 38-22 38-21 38-23 40-13 40-23 40-19 42-5 42-27 42-15 44-2 44-34 44-17 46-10 46-45 46-25 48-22 48-51 48-38 50-42 50-60 50-50 52-68 52-67 52
1. Use the tabular data provided above to construct 3 graphs with Temperature data on the X-axis, and Altitude on the Y-axis. Connect each of the points with a line that represents the change in temperature with altitude. Make each of the 3 plots use the same dimensions for both of the axes (i.e., make the maximum and minimum values on the axes the same for all three plots). You may use Microsoft Excel, or other graphing software to make the plots, or you can plot the data by hand using the graph paper provided. When completed, you should have 3 plots that are identically constructed, with the unique data for each of the 3 locations plotted on them. Note that the data are from the northern hemisphere during the summer. 2. Using the data plots, identify which zone corresponds to the following parts of the atmosphere and draw a horizontal line delineating the boundaries between each of the 3 zones identified below A) Troposphere B) Stratosphere C) Mesosphere 3. Label the boundary lines between the zones A) Tropopause B) Stratopause Answer the following questions regarding the 3 plots. Questions that require a verbal response (e.g., Q5) should be typed and use grammatically correct sentences. 4. At what altitude does the tropopause occur for each Site? Does it occur at the same altitude? Site A = 14 km. Site B = 20 km. Site C = 10 km 5. Using the data and analyses you have done, comment as to approximate location on the Earth that would produce these kind of data plots. Be sure to address how you came to the conclusion and how the data/information assisted with your conclusions. Site A= Temperate; Site B= Tropics; Site C =Polar. Given the data are from the northern hemisphere and during the summer, there are three things that need to be examined; 1) the starting temperature at the ground; 2) the thickness of the troposphere and; 3) the homogeneity of the troposphere- i.e., no evidence of stratification in the troposphere. The starting temps indicate that site C is likely
someplace where temperatures are cool, site B is someplace warm and site A is somewhere between those two extremes. That said, it is given that this is summer, and it is possible to get a range of temperatures on any given day at any given location within the observed values. The height of the tropopause is related to the average temperature of the troposphere by the gas laws, most notably the relationship between temperature and volume. As temperature increases, volume also increases. Thus, site B, which has the highest starting daily temperature also has the highest altitude for the tropopause and has the highest overall temperature in the troposphere. There is very little variability in the rate of temperature decrease indicating that this location is likely somewhere in the tropics. The opposite is true for site C, as the tropopause is the lowest of the three sites, and the ground temps are cooler, suggesting a polar climate. Site A, which has an intermediate altitude, and ground temperature, also has some stratification in the troposphere, suggesting someplace where cool air and warm air mix frequently- the mid latitudes.
Stratopause Tropopause Temp ( C) vs Altitude (km) Site A; Evansville, IN 70 65 60 55 50 Mesosphere 45 Altitude (km) 40 35 30 25 Stratosphere 20 15 10 5 Troposphere 0-80 -75-70 -65-60 -55-50 -45-40 -35-30 -25-20 -15-10 -5 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 Temperature ( C)
Temp ( C) vs Altitude (km) Site B; São Luis, Brazil 70 65 60 Altitude (km) 55 50 45 40 35 30 Mesosphere Stratosphere Stratopause 25 20 15 Tropopause 10 5 Troposphere 0-80 -75-70 -65-60 -55-50 -45-40 -35-30 -25-20 -15-10 -5 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 Temperature ( C)
Temperature ( C) vs Altitude (km) Site C; Longyearbyen, Norway 70 65 60 55 Mesosphere 50 45 Altitude (km) 40 35 30 Stratopause 25 20 Stratosphere 15 10 5 Troposphere Tropopause 0-75 -70-65 -60-55 -50-45 -40-35 -30-25 -20-15 -10-5 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 Temperature ( C)