Article
Article
Thermosphere
Article By:
Solomon, Stanley C. High Altitude Observatory, National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, Colorado.
Roble, Raymond G. National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, Colorado.
Last reviewed:December 2019
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.757388
The thermosphere is a rarefied portion of the atmosphere, lying in a spherical region between 55 and 300 mi (90 and 500 km) above the Earth's surface, where the temperature increases dramatically with altitude. Many satellites orbit in the upper thermosphere and even though it is very low in density, the drag on these satellites exerted by collisions with thermospheric atoms and molecules eventually brings them down to burn up in the atmosphere.
The content above is only an excerpt.
About AccessScience
AccessScience provides the most accurate and trustworthy scientific information available.
Recognized as an award-winning gateway to scientific knowledge, AccessScience is an amazing online resource that contains high-quality reference material written specifically for students. Contributors include more than 10,000 highly qualified scientists and 46 Nobel Prize winners.
MORE THAN 8700 articles covering all major scientific disciplines and encompassing the McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science & Technology and McGraw-Hill Yearbook of Science & Technology
115,000-PLUS definitions from the McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms
3000 biographies of notable scientific figures
MORE THAN 19,000 downloadable images and animations illustrating key topics
ENGAGING VIDEOS highlighting the life and work of award-winning scientists
SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER STUDY and additional readings to guide students to deeper understanding and research
LINKS TO CITABLE LITERATURE help students expand their knowledge using primary sources of information
