Cross Section Model of Earth's Lower Atmosphere · Earth and Space Sciences Reference Tables (ESSRT)

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The Cross Section Model of Earth's Lower Atmosphere from the Reference Tables for Earth and Space Sciences (ESSRT) is a side view of the troposphere and the lower stratosphere from the North Pole to the equator. It primarily supports HS-ESS2-8.

What the lower atmosphere cross section shows

The horizontal axis is latitude from the North Pole to the equator, and the vertical axes give altitude in kilometers (0 to 20) and in feet (0 to 60,000). The tropopause, the boundary between the troposphere and the stratosphere, rises from about 9 km above the North Pole to about 17 km above the equator. Arrows trace the circulation of air in the troposphere, rising at the low-pressure zones (L) at the equator and near 60° N and sinking at the high-pressure zones (H) near 30° N and at the pole. The model also places the polar front, the polar front jet stream and the subtropical jet stream, and shows tall clouds where air rises at the equator.