Mesosphere

Mesosphere is the layer of the Earth's atmosphere that is directly above the stratosphere and directly below the thermosphere. In the mesosphere, temperature decreases as altitude increases. This characteristic is used to define its limits: it begins at the top of the stratosphere (sometimes called the stratopause), and ends at the mesopause, which is the coldest part of Earth's atmosphere with temperatures below -143 °C (-225°F). The exact altitude of the mesopause can vary significantly, but it is typically around 85 to 100 km (53 to 62 mi; 280,000 to 330,000 ft) above the Earth's surface.

Composition

The mesosphere is composed primarily of oxygen, nitrogen, and carbon dioxide. The concentration of these gases is much lower than in the lower layers of the atmosphere, but they are still present in significant amounts. The mesosphere also contains a small amount of other gases, such as argon, neon, and helium.

Characteristics

The mesosphere is the layer of the Earth's atmosphere where most meteors burn up upon atmospheric entrance. It is too high above Earth to be accessible to jet-powered aircraft and balloons, and too low to permit orbital spacecraft. The mesosphere is mainly accessed by sounding rockets and from the International Space Station by an instrument called the Sounding of the Atmosphere using Broadband Emission Radiometry (SABER).

See also

• Atmosphere of Earth
• Exosphere
• Stratosphere
• Troposphere

References

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Mesosphere gallery

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  Antarctic aurora

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  Atmosphere layers

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  Soyuz TMA-17M reentry

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  Red Sprites, northwest Mexico

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  View of Asia