What is the source of tropospheric ozone?

sunlight
Tropospheric ozone is formed by the interaction of sunlight, particularly ultraviolet light, with hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides, which are emitted by automobile tailpipes and smokestacks. In urban areas, high ozone levels usually occur during warm summer months.

Why is there more ozone in the stratosphere than the troposphere?

Ozone production in the troposphere is much less efficient than in the stratosphere because the intensity of ultraviolet sunlight is greatly reduced. CFCs are transported to the stratosphere by this process, which also allows ozone exchange between the atmospheric levels.

Is ozone in the troposphere or stratosphere?

Ozone location. The ozone layer extends over the entire globe with some variation in altitude and thickness. The remaining ozone, about 10%, is found in the troposphere, which is the lowest region of the atmosphere, between Earth’s surface and the stratosphere.

What is the difference between tropospheric and stratospheric ozone?

The key difference between stratospheric ozone and tropospheric ozone is that stratospheric ozone concentration is very high, whereas tropospheric ozone concentration is low. Ozone gas in the stratosphere is formed from the reaction between atomic oxygen with molecular oxygen.

How is ozone formed in stratosphere?

Stratospheric ozone is formed naturally through the interaction of solar ultraviolet (UV) radiation with molecular oxygen (O2). The “ozone layer,” approximately 6 through 30 miles above the Earth’s surface, reduces the amount of harmful UV radiation reaching the Earth’s surface.

Where is tropospheric ozone found?

stratosphere
WHAT IS Tropospheric Ozone? Ozone (O3) is a reactive gas that exists in two layers of the atmosphere: the stratosphere (upper layer) and the troposphere (at ground level and up to 15km). In the stratosphere, ozone protects life on Earth from the sun’s ultraviolet radiation.

How much ozone is in the stratosphere?

About 90 percent of the ozone in the atmosphere is contained in the stratosphere. Ozone concentrations are greatest between about 20 and 40 kilometres (66,000 and 131,000 ft), where they range from about 2 to 8 parts per million.

Why is ozone only in stratosphere?

The ozone layer in the stratosphere absorbs a portion of the radiation from the sun, preventing it from reaching the planet’s surface. Most importantly, it absorbs the portion of UV light called UVB. UVB is a kind of ultraviolet light from the sun (and sun lamps) that has several harmful effects.

Where is the ozone layer in the stratosphere?

The Earth’s ozone layer. The ozone layer lies approximately 15-40 kilometers (10-25 miles) above the Earth’s surface, in the stratosphere.

How is ozone useful in the stratosphere?

Ozone in the stratosphere absorbs most of the ultraviolet radiation from the Sun. Without ozone, the Sun’s intense UV radiation would sterilize the Earth’s surface. Ozone screens all of the most energetic, UV-c, radiation, and most of the UV-b radiation.

How is ozone formed in the stratosphere?

How is ozone formed in the troposphere and the stratosphere and how are these processes different?

In the stratosphere, the process begins with an oxygen molecule (O2 ) being broken apart by ultraviolet radiation from the Sun. In the lower atmos phere (troposphere), ozone is formed by a different set of chemical reactions that involve naturally occurring gases and those from pollution sources.

How is ozone formed in the troposphere?

Tropospheric ozone is formed by the interaction of sunlight, particularly ultraviolet light, with hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides, which are emitted by automobile tailpipes and smokestacks. In urban areas, high ozone levels usually occur during warm summer months.

What is stratospheric ozone and why is it important?

• Stratospheric ozone, climate and health: Naturally occurring stratospheric ozone acts as a protective layer, absorbing harmful solar radiation that damages our skin and eyes and the cell structure of plants.

How far can tropospheric ozone travel?

Today, scientists understand that tropospheric ozone, like stratospheric ozone, can travel thousands of miles and is not isolated to an emission source. In fact, some of the most hazardous levels of tropospheric ozone can be found miles from the source of pollution downwind from more industrial emission centers.

What instruments are used to measure ozone in the troposphere?

Current NASA assets that measure ozone in the troposphere include: Aura satellite – Tropospheric Emissions Spectrometer (TES), Aura satellite – Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS), IR; Ozonesondes, which can take vertical profiles and measure ozone chemically; and ground-based systems, which measure ozone chemically and with lidar technology.