Which form of oxygen is found in the stratosphere?

Ozone, an unusual type of oxygen molecule that is relatively abundant in the stratosphere, heats this layer as it absorbs energy from incoming ultraviolet radiation from the Sun. Temperatures rise as one moves upward through the stratosphere.

What is the variety of oxygen that absorbs ultraviolet radiation in the stratosphere?

Ozone
Ozone. In the stratosphere, ozone is created primarily by ultraviolet radiation. When high-energy ultraviolet rays strike ordinary oxygen molecules (O2), they split the molecule into two single oxygen atoms, known as atomic oxygen.

What is a form of oxygen that strongly absorbs ultraviolet light?

Ozone has two properties of interest to human health. First, it absorbs UV light, reducing human exposure to harmful UV radiation that causes skin cancer and cataracts.

What filters UV radiation in the atmosphere?

Ozone is a particularly effective absorber of UV radiation. As the ozone layer gets thinner, the protective filter activity of the atmosphere is progressively reduced.

Which layer of the atmosphere is considered the warmest?

thermosphere
The thermosphere is often considered the “hot layer” because it contains the warmest temperatures in the atmosphere. Temperature increases with height until the estimated top of the thermosphere at 500 km. Temperatures can reach as high as 2000 K or 1727 ºC in this layer (Wallace and Hobbs 24).

Which gas is most effective in absorbing incoming harmful ultraviolet radiation?

Ozone is the combination of three oxygen atoms into a single molecule (O3). It is a gas produced naturally in the stratosphere where it strongly absorbs incoming UV radiation. But as stratospheric ozone decreases, UV radiation is allowed to pass through, and exposure at the Earth’s surface increases.

What protects us from harmful solar radiation?

The ozone layer protects us from potentially harmful ultraviolet (UV) radiation.

What is the difference between ozone and oxygen?

Both diatomic ozone (O2) and triatomic ozone (O3) are made up of oxygen atoms but they have different chemical and physical properties. Oxygen is odorless while ozone has a strong, pungent odor. Ozone liquifies at -112 degrees Celsius while oxygen liquifies at a much lower temperature — -183 °C.

Why UV rays are harmful?

UV exposure increases the risk of potentially blinding eye diseases, if eye protection is not used. Overexposure to UV radiation can lead to serious health issues, including cancer. Skin cancer is the most common cancer in the United States.

What happens when an ozone molecule is exposed to ultraviolet radiation?

When an ozone molecule absorbs even low-energy ultraviolet radiation, it splits into an ordinary oxygen molecule and a free oxygen atom. Usually this free oxygen atom quickly re-joins with an oxygen molecule to form another ozone molecule. Because of this “ozone-oxygen cycle,” harmful ultraviolet radiation is continuously converted into heat.

What causes the concentration of ozone in the stratosphere?

Natural reactions other than the “ozone-oxygen cycle” described above also affect the concentration of ozone in the stratosphere.

How are CFC molecules transported to the stratosphere?

CFC molecules thus are able to migrate intact up into the stratosphere. Although the CFC molecules are heavier than air, the air currents and mixing processes of the atmosphere carry them into the stratosphere. Once in the stratosphere, the CFC molecules are no longer shielded from ultraviolet radiation by the ozone layer.

How are the oxygen atoms in the ozone formed?

Ozone: it is a highly reactive gas composed of three oxygen atoms. It is formed naturally through solar ultraviolet radiation with molecular oxygen. The ozone protects us from the sun’s harmful UV rays. Ozone: O3 is a molecule made up of three oxygen atoms.