Properties of the Atmosphere: Introduction
Earth's Unique Atmosphere
Venus' atmosphere has too much carbon dioxide to support any life as we know it; it would kill us. All that carbon dioxide also traps heat from the Sun and makes the surface of Venus a rather sweltering 470°C. On top of that, the clouds that swirl over Venus are made of sulfuric acid, and a light drizzle of acid rains over the whole planet. If you tried to land a space ship on Venus, first, you would have to get through the thick acidic clouds, then you would have to survive the hurricane force winds that blow around on the planet at speeds of over 800 km/hr. Once you got out of your spaceship, you would have to breathe fiery hot, acidic, poisonous air! Now do you appreciate our Earth’s atmosphere?
In this section, you will learn about the features of Earth’s atmosphere. You will learn about the gases that make it up, why it is just right for supporting life, and how the atmosphere is structured.
