troposphere

American  

[trop-uh-sfeer, troh-puh-] / ˈtrɒp əˌsfɪər, ˈtroʊ pə- /

noun

Meteorology.

1. the lowest layer of the atmosphere, 6 miles (10 km) high in some areas and as much as 12 miles (20 km) high in others, within which there is a steady drop in temperature with increasing altitude and within which nearly all cloud formations occur and weather conditions manifest themselves.

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troposphere British  

/ ˌtrɒpəˈsfɛrɪk, ˈtrɒpəˌsfɪə /

noun

1. the lowest atmospheric layer, about 18 kilometres (11 miles) thick at the equator to about 6 km (4 miles) at the Poles, in which air temperature decreases normally with height at about 6.5°C per km

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troposphere Scientific  

/ trō′pə-sfîr′,trŏp′ə- /

1. The lowest and densest region of the Earth's atmosphere, extending from the Earth's surface to the tropopause. The troposphere is characterized by temperatures that decrease with increasing altitude. At the top of this region, temperatures are close to −55°C (−67°F). The weather, major wind systems, and cloud formations occur mostly in the troposphere.

2. See also exosphere mesosphere stratosphere thermosphere See illustration at atmosphere

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troposphere Cultural  

1. The lowest layer of the atmosphere of the Earth, extending from ground level to an altitude of seven to ten miles.

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Other Word Forms

• tropospheric adjective

Etymology

Origin of troposphere

First recorded in 1905–10; tropo- + sphere

Compare meaning

How does troposphere compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• troposphere vs. stratosphere

Example Sentences

This increase promotes ice nucleation in clouds in the lower troposphere, weakening the efficiency of clouds to contain more liquid droplets and fewer ice crystals as the Arctic warms.

From Science Daily

They used self-organizing maps, a machine learning method, to classify patterns of daily weather in the troposphere, the lowest layer of Earth's atmosphere where most weather occurs.

From Science Daily

Jet streams travel in the tropopause—the area between the troposphere and the stratosphere—that hovers between five and nine miles above the Earth's surface.

From National Geographic

Meanwhile, a strengthening vortex of polar air currents in the troposphere has helped strengthen summer cyclones.

From Scientific American

Life and civilization take place mostly on the planet's surface and in the troposphere, the atmosphere's very lowest layer.

From Science Daily

Related Words

• atmosphere
• breeze
• wind