Standard temperature and pressure (STP) or standard conditions for temperature and pressure are various standard sets of conditions for experimental measurements used to allow comparisons to be made between different sets of data. The most used standards are those of the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), although these are not universally accepted. Other organizations have established a variety of other definitions.
The troposphere is the lowest layer of the atmosphere of Earth. It contains 80% of the total mass of the planetary atmosphere and 99% of the total mass of water vapor and aerosols, and is where most weather phenomena occur. From the planetary surface of the Earth, the average height of the troposphere is 18 km in the tropics; 17 km in the middle latitudes; and 6 km in the high latitudes of the polar regions in winter; thus the average height of the troposphere is 13 km.
Atmospheric pressure, also known as air pressure or barometric pressure, is the pressure within the atmosphere of Earth. The standard atmosphere is a unit of pressure defined as 101,325 Pa (1,013.25 hPa), which is equivalent to 1,013.25 millibars, 760 mm Hg, 29.9212 inches Hg, or 14.696 psi. The atm unit is roughly equivalent to the mean sea-level atmospheric pressure on Earth; that is, the Earth's atmospheric pressure at sea level is approximately 1 atm.
Altitude is a distance measurement, usually in the vertical or "up" direction, between a reference datum and a point or object. The exact definition and reference datum varies according to the context. Although the term altitude is commonly used to mean the height above sea level of a location, in geography the term elevation is often preferred for this usage.
Geopotential height or geopotential altitude is a vertical coordinate referenced to Earth's mean sea level that represents the work involved in lifting one unit of mass over one unit of length through a hypothetical space in which the acceleration of gravity is assumed constant. In SI units, a geopotential height difference of one meter implies the vertical transport of a parcel of one kilogram; adopting the standard gravity value, it corresponds to a constant work or potential energy difference of 9.80665 joules.
Standard atmosphere may refer to:
The atmosphere of Earth is composed of a layer of gas mixture that surrounds the Earth's planetary surface, known collectively as air, with variable quantities of suspended aerosols and particulates, all retained by Earth's gravity. The atmosphere serves as a protective buffer between the Earth's surface and outer space, shields the surface from most meteoroids and ultraviolet solar radiation, keeps it warm and reduces diurnal temperature variation through heat retention, redistributes heat and moisture among different regions via air currents, and provides the chemical and climate conditions allowing life to exist and evolve on Earth.
The lapse rate is the rate at which an atmospheric variable, normally temperature in Earth's atmosphere, falls with altitude. Lapse rate arises from the word lapse. In dry air, the adiabatic lapse rate is 9.8 °C/km. The saturated adiabatic lapse rate (SALR), or moist adiabatic lapse rate (MALR), is the decrease in temperature of a parcel of water-saturated air that rises in the atmosphere. It varies with the temperature and pressure of the parcel and is often in the range 3.6 to 9.2 °C/km, as obtained from the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). The environmental lapse rate is the decrease in temperature of air with altitude for a specific time and place. It can be highly variable between circumstances.
The density of air or atmospheric density, denoted ρ, is the mass per unit volume of Earth's atmosphere. Air density, like air pressure, decreases with increasing altitude. It also changes with variations in atmospheric pressure, temperature and humidity. At 101.325 kPa (abs) and 20 °C, air has a density of approximately 1.204 kg/m3 (0.0752 lb/cu ft), according to the International Standard Atmosphere (ISA). At 101.325 kPa (abs) and 15 °C (59 °F), air has a density of approximately 1.225 kg/m3 (0.0765 lb/cu ft), which is about 1⁄800 that of water, according to the International Standard Atmosphere (ISA). Pure liquid water is 1,000 kg/m3 (62 lb/cu ft).
In aviation, airspeed is the speed of an aircraft relative to the air it is flying through. It is difficult to measure the exact airspeed of the aircraft, but other measures of airspeed, such as indicated airspeed and Mach number give useful information about the capabilities and limitations of airplane performance. The common measures of airspeed are:
The true airspeed of an aircraft is the speed of the aircraft relative to the air mass through which it is flying. The true airspeed is important information for accurate navigation of an aircraft. Traditionally it is measured using an analogue TAS indicator, but as GPS has become available for civilian use, the importance of such air-measuring instruments has decreased. Since indicated, as opposed to true, airspeed is a better indicator of margin above the stall, true airspeed is not used for controlling the aircraft; for these purposes the indicated airspeed – IAS or KIAS – is used. However, since indicated airspeed only shows true speed through the air at standard sea level pressure and temperature, a TAS meter is necessary for navigation purposes at cruising altitude in less dense air. The IAS meter reads very nearly the TAS at lower altitude and at lower speed. On jet airliners the TAS meter is usually hidden at speeds below 200 knots (370 km/h). Neither provides for accurate speed over the ground, since surface winds or winds aloft are not taken into account.
The barometric formula is a formula used to model how the pressure of the air changes with altitude.
In aviation, calibrated airspeed (CAS) is indicated airspeed corrected for instrument and position error.
The density altitude is the altitude relative to standard atmospheric conditions at which the air density would be equal to the indicated air density at the place of observation. In other words, the density altitude is the air density given as a height above mean sea level. The density altitude can also be considered to be the pressure altitude adjusted for a non-standard temperature.
The U.S. Standard Atmosphere is a static atmospheric model of how the pressure, temperature, density, and viscosity of the Earth's atmosphere change over a wide range of altitudes or elevations. The model, based on an existing international standard, was first published in 1958 by the U.S. Committee on Extension to the Standard Atmosphere, and was updated in 1962, 1966, and 1976. It is largely consistent in methodology with the International Standard Atmosphere, differing mainly in the assumed temperature distribution at higher altitudes.
A reference atmospheric model describes how the ideal gas properties of an atmosphere change, primarily as a function of altitude, and sometimes also as a function of latitude, day of year, etc. A static atmospheric model has a more limited domain, excluding time. A standard atmosphere is defined by the World Meteorological Organization as "a hypothetical vertical distribution of atmospheric temperature, pressure and density which, by international agreement, is roughly representative of year-round, midlatitude conditions."
QFF is an aeronautical code Q code. It is the MSL pressure derived from local meteorological station conditions in accordance with meteorological practice. This is the altimeter setting that is intended to produce correct altitude indication on an altimeter at the actual sea level elevation, while QNH is intended to have no error at the station elevation.
Surface weather observations are the fundamental data used for safety as well as climatological reasons to forecast weather and issue warnings worldwide. They can be taken manually, by a weather observer, by computer through the use of automated weather stations, or in a hybrid scheme using weather observers to augment the otherwise automated weather station. The ICAO defines the International Standard Atmosphere (ISA), which is the model of the standard variation of pressure, temperature, density, and viscosity with altitude in the Earth's atmosphere, and is used to reduce a station pressure to sea level pressure. Airport observations can be transmitted worldwide through the use of the METAR observing code. Personal weather stations taking automated observations can transmit their data to the United States mesonet through the Citizen Weather Observer Program (CWOP), the UK Met Office through their Weather Observations Website (WOW), or internationally through the Weather Underground Internet site. A thirty-year average of a location's weather observations is traditionally used to determine the station's climate. In the US a network of Cooperative Observers make a daily record of summary weather and sometimes water level information.
Vertical position or vertical location is a position along a vertical direction above or below a given vertical datum . Vertical distance or vertical separation is the distance between two vertical positions. Many vertical coordinates exist for expressing vertical position: depth, height, altitude, elevation, etc. Points lying on an equigeopotential surface are said to be on the same vertical level, as in a water level.
This glossary of meteorology is a list of terms and concepts relevant to meteorology and atmospheric science, their sub-disciplines, and related fields.
