Lecture #8

Vertical profile of atmospheric pressure

Course: ASL385: Fundamentals of Air Pollution Science

Sajeev Philip
Centre for Atmospheric Sciences (CAS), IIT Delhi
[email protected]
https://web.iitd.ac.in/~philipsajeev

January 29, 2024

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 Lecture #8: Outline
Vertical profile of atmospheric pressure
Course: ASL385: Fundamentals of Air Pollution Science

1. Recap: Vertical profiles of pressure and temperature

2. Hydrostatic law

3. Barometric law

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Earth’s Atmosphere

Mean vertical profile of air

temperature and definition of
atmospheric layers

Courtesy: Brasseur and

D.J. Jacob, 2016
 Vertical profiles of pressure and temperature
➢ Figure shows typical vertical
profiles of atmospheric
pressure and temperature for
30oN in March
Stratopause Stratopause
➢ Atmospheric pressures are
plotted on a logarithmic
scale, as seen in the labeling
of the x-axis

➢ Pressure decreases
exponentially with altitude
Tropopause Tropopause
➢ The fraction of total
atmospheric weight located
above altitude z is P(z)/P(0)
 Question #1
✓ The tropopause in the figure on the
right-hand side is at 150 hPa, which
is about the global average.
Stratopause
Pressure at stratopause is 0.9 hPa.
What fraction of total atmospheric
mass is in the stratosphere?

Tropopause
 Question #2

✓ What is the slope of the straight line

shown in the right-hand side figure?
Stratopause

Tropopause
 Pressure-gradient and gravity forces
➢ Consider an elemental slab of the atmosphere at altitude z with vertical thickness dz

Pressure-gradient acceleration
𝟏 𝒅𝒑
-
𝝆𝒂 𝒅𝒛
z + dz P(z + dz)

z p(z)

Acceleration due to gravity (g)

➢ The slab is subject in the vertical to the acceleration of gravity g, which pushes it down

➢ And to the pressure-gradient acceleration ap, which pushes it up since pressure

decreases with altitude.
 Pressure-gradient and gravity forces
➢ The slab is subject in the vertical to the acceleration of gravity g, which pushes it down

➢ And to the pressure-gradient acceleration ap, which pushes it up since pressure

decreases with altitude.
Pressure-gradient acceleration
𝟏 𝒅𝒑
-
𝝆𝒂 𝒅𝒛
z + dz P(z + dz)

z p(z)

Acceleration due to gravity (g)

➢ If these two forces are not in balance then the atmospheric slab will be accelerated
upward and downward; this is called buoyancy
 Hydrostatic law
Pressure-gradient acceleration
➢ The slab is subject in the vertical to the acceleration 𝟏 𝒅𝒑
of gravity g, which pushes it down -
𝝆𝒂 𝒅𝒛
z + dz P(z + dz)
➢ And to the pressure-gradient acceleration ap, which
pushes it up since pressure decreases with altitude. z p(z)

➢ On average the two forces must be in equilibrium,

which is called hydrostatic balance and is defined Acceleration due to gravity (g)
by equating the two accelerations:

𝟏 𝒅𝒑
g= -
𝝆𝒂 𝒅𝒛

Hydrostatic law expresses a

Hydrostatic law dp = - ρa g dz dependence of pressure on altitude
 Hydrostatic law
Pressure-gradient acceleration
𝟏 𝒅𝒑
-
𝝆𝒂 𝒅𝒛
Hydrostatic law dp = - ρa g dz z + dz P(z + dz)

z p(z)

Acceleration due to gravity (g)

➢ Hydrostatic law assumes that the fluid parcel is in vertical

equilibrium between the gravitational and pressure-gradient forces

➢ And any vertical acceleration of the air parcel due to buoyancy is

small compared to the acceleration of gravity

➢ This is called the hydrostatic approximation

 Variation of pressure with altitude
➢ The air density ρa is a function of pressure following the ideal gas law:

𝒑 𝑴𝒂
ρ𝒂 =
𝑹𝑻
dp = - ρa g dz

𝐌𝐚 𝐠
dp / p =-( ) dz
𝐑𝐓
 Variation of pressure with altitude
➢ The air density ρa is a function of pressure following the ideal gas law:

dp = - ρa g dz
𝐌𝐚 𝐠
dp / p =-( ) dz
𝐑𝐓

➢ Because the atmosphere (~80 km) is thin relative to the Earth’s radius (~6000 km),
g can be treated as constant with altitude
 Variation of pressure with altitude
➢ The air density ρa is a function of pressure following the ideal gas law:

dp = - ρa g dz
𝐌𝐚 𝐠
dp / p =-( ) dz
𝐑𝐓

➢ Because the atmosphere (~80 km) is thin relative to the Earth’s radius (~6000 km),
g can be treated as constant with altitude

➢ We now make the simplifying assumption that T is constant with altitude

➢ As shown in figure, T varies by only ± 20% below 80 km

𝐌𝐚 𝐠
➢ Thus is constant with altitude
𝐑𝐓
 Variation of pressure with altitude
𝐌𝐚 𝐠
dp / p = - ( ) dz
𝐑𝐓
𝐌𝐚 𝐠
➢ is constant with altitude, we can readily integrate the above equation:
𝐑𝐓

𝐌𝐚 𝐠
ln p(z) – ln p(0) = - ( ) z
𝐑𝐓
 Variation of pressure with altitude
𝐌𝐚 𝐠
dp / p = - ( ) dz
𝐑𝐓
➢ Mag/RT is constant with altitude, we can readily integrate the above equation:
𝐌𝐚 𝐠
ln p(z) – ln p(0) = - ( ) z
𝐑𝐓

𝐌𝐚 𝐠
p(z) = p(0) exp (- ( ) z)
𝐑𝐓

p(z) = p(0) exp (- z / H)

𝐑𝐓
where H =
𝐌𝐚 𝐠
 Barometric law
➢ The variation of pressure with altitude as given by
the below equation is called the barometric law

p(z) = p(0) exp (- z / H)

𝐑𝐓
Scale height: H =
𝐌𝐚 𝐠

➢ The barometric law explains the exponential dependence of P on z

 Question #3
✓ Assume a mean atmospheric temperature of
250 K. Calculate the value of scale height H.
Make sure that H has the unit of length.
Stratopause

✓ Compare the value of H with the slope of the

line in the figure. Comment on the differences.

Tropopause
𝐑𝐓
Scale height: H =
𝐌𝐚 𝐠

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 Atmospheric scale height
➢ The variation of pressure with altitude as given by
the below equation is called the barometric law

p(z) = p(0) exp (- z / H)

𝐑𝐓
Scale height: H =
𝐌𝐚 𝐠

➢ The scale height is a convenient measure of how

rapidly the atmosphere thins out with altitude

➢ For every increase H in altitude, the pressure

decreases by a factor e = 2.71
 Variation of air density (ρa) and
air number density (na) with altitude
𝐑𝐓
p(z) = p(0) exp (- z / H) H=
𝐌𝐚 𝐠
➢ The vertical dependence of the air density (ρa) can be similarly formulated

➢ ρa and P are linearly related if T is assumed constant

𝒑 𝑴𝒂
ρ𝒂 =
𝑹𝑻
ρa(z) = ρa(0) exp (- z / H)

➢ The decrease of the air number density (na) with altitude follows the same barometric law
𝒑 𝑨𝒗
➢ na and P are linearly related if T is assumed constant 𝒏𝒂 =
𝑹𝑻
na(z) = na(0) exp (- z / H)
 Question #4
✓ Assume the pressure at a height z is p(z). Calculate the fractional
decrease in pressure at altitude H (scale height) above z.

The pressure at altitude z + H is only

__________% of what it was at z
p(z) = p(0) exp (- z / H)

𝐑𝐓
Scale height: H =
𝐌𝐚 𝐠

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 Question #5

✓ What is the fractional decrease in pressure for every

5 km increase in altitude?

The pressure decreases by about

a factor of _____ for every 5 km
increase in altitude

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 Question #6

✓ The cruising altitudes of subsonic and supersonic aircraft

are 12 km and 20 km, respectively. What is the relative
difference in air density between these two altitudes?

✓ Comment on the high speed of supersonic aircraft.

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 Question #7

✓ On Mars the atmosphere is mainly CO2, the temperature

is 220 K, and the acceleration of gravity is 3.7 m s-2.
What is the scale height of the Martian atmosphere?

✓ Compare to the scale height of the Earth’s atmosphere.

Comment on the differences.

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 Question #8
Consider the atmospheres of Earth and
Venus. Assume that these planets have
the same planetary interior density.

✓ How does the depth of the Venusian

atmosphere compare to that of
Earth?

Courtesy: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ESA; https://mars.nasa.gov/resources/26748/venus-earth-and-its-moon-and-mars/

 Question #9
✓ Total mass of the atmosphere using species-dependent scale height
Many species in the atmosphere have mass concentrations “μ”
that decrease roughly exponentially with altitude:

µ 𝒛 = µ 𝟎 𝒆−𝒛/𝒉 (1)

where h is a species-dependent scale height (not necessarily

the atmospheric scale height H). For such a species and
assuming a horizontally uniform mass concentration, show
that the total atmospheric mass “m” of the species is given by:

𝐦 = 𝟒𝛑𝒓𝟐 µ 𝟎 𝒉 (2)
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 Question #10
✓ Mass density of air at the surface

Total atmospheric mass “m” of the species is given by:

𝐦 = 𝟒𝛑𝒓𝟐 µ 𝟎 𝒉 (2)

Let us first apply Equation (2) to air itself, for which h = H and the
mass concentration μ is equal to the mass density ρ.

Calculate the mass density ρa(0) of air at the surface of the Earth
using the ideal gas law and assuming global average values of
surface pressure and temperature (984 hPa, 288 K).
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 Question #11
✓ Total mass of the atmosphere using scale height: h = H

Total atmospheric mass “m” of the species is given by:

𝐦 = 𝟒𝛑𝒓𝟐 µ 𝟎 𝒉 (2)

Equation (2) allows a quick estimate of the total atmospheric

mass of a species simply from knowing its scale height h
and its concentration in surface air.

Let us first apply Equation (2) to air itself, for which h = H and
the mass concentration μ is equal to the mass density ρ.
Infer the total mass of the atmosphere using the Equation (2).
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 Question #12

✓ Compare the total mass of the atmosphere

given by Question (11) using Equation (2) with
our initial calculation by assuming a global
mean pressure [Question (1) from Lecture #7].

✓ Calculate the total mass of the atmosphere

✓ Briefly explain the reason (in kg). The global mean pressure at the
surface of the Earth is 984 hPa and the
for the difference. radius of the Earth is 6400 km.
𝑷𝒔 (𝟒 𝝅 𝑹𝟐 )
𝒎𝒂 = = 5.2 x 1018 kg
𝒈