The Earth from the Air: Yann Arthus-Bertrand

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The Earth has changed… A new edition of this classic book, with nearly 100 new photographs by Yann Arthus-Bertrand and seven new essays by such renowned authors as Jane Goodall, Matthieu Ricard and Oliver Blond. New editorials by such renowned authors as Jane Goodall, Matthieu Ricard and Olivier Blond consider such perpetual issues as agriculture, climate and biodiversity, as well as the latest concerns – refugees, new technologies and environmental movements. It extends from the mesopause (which separates it from the mesosphere) at an altitude of about 80 km (50 mi; 260,000 ft) up to the thermopause at an altitude range of 500–1000 km (310–620 mi; 1,600,000–3,300,000 ft). The temperature of the thermosphere gradually increases with height and can rise as high as 1500 °C (2700 °F), though the gas molecules are so far apart that its temperature in the usual sense is not very meaningful. Aurorae shown here at the bottom of the thermosphere can actually form at any altitude in this atmospheric layer.

Although the temperature may be −60 °C (−76 °F; 210 K) at the tropopause, the top of the stratosphere is much warmer, and may be near 0 °C. Just below the mesopause, the air is so cold that even the very scarce water vapor at this altitude can condense into polar-mesospheric noctilucent clouds of ice particles.The atmosphere of Earth is the layer of gases, known collectively as air, retained by Earth's gravity that surrounds the planet and forms its planetary atmosphere. The stratospheric temperature profile creates very stable atmospheric conditions, so the stratosphere lacks the weather-producing air turbulence that is so prevalent in the troposphere. Each image has a story to tell – most with ecological or social themes, which when viewed collectively present the ecosystem and our relationship to it in all its complicated glory. The average atmospheric pressure at sea level is defined by the International Standard Atmosphere as 101325 pascals (760.

Two main processes govern changes in the atmosphere: Plants using carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and releasing oxygen, and then plants using some oxygen at night by the process of photorespiration while the remaining oxygen is used to break down organic material. The troposphere is bounded above by the tropopause, a boundary marked in most places by a temperature inversion (i. The planetary boundary layer is the part of the troposphere that is closest to Earth's surface and is directly affected by it, mainly through turbulent diffusion. The refractive index of air depends on temperature, [49] giving rise to refraction effects when the temperature gradient is large.Nearly all atmospheric water vapor or moisture is found in the troposphere, so it is the layer where most of Earth's weather takes place. I haven't gone through the entire book of high quality pictures but I was honestly only expecting it to have photos of human impact on the Earth BUT it also contains short excerpts from experts in different fields; there are descriptions and discussions on agriculture affects, climate change, and other topics in this book that add to the visual aspects of the book I was looking forward to seeing. Still another region of increasing temperature with altitude occurs at very high altitudes, in the aptly-named thermosphere above 90 km.