THE CHEMISTRY AND PHOTOCHEMISTRY OF THE TERRESTRIAL ATMOSPHERE,
Abstract
Rockets employed in research have substantially broadened knowledge of the composition of the terrestrial atmosphere and of the processes which take place within it. In addition to the conditions under which the atmospheric constitutents can be generated and acquired, our interest lay primarily in the water vapor, hydrogen and oxygen balance of the atmosphere. Water vapor is practically irreversibly dissociated into atoms in the upper layers of the atmosphere. Of these atoms the hydrogen ions in particular are able to leave the gravitational field of the earth quite easily, while the oxygen remains and the heavier hydrogen is enriched. Of the rare gases, argon is the most frequent since it is continuously being formed by radioactive processes. The cosmic-ray radiation produces radioactive carbon 14 C and tritium, which might become essential for time determinations because of their halflife. (Author)
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 29, 1953
- Accession Number
- AD0817442
Entities
People
- P. Harteck
Organizations
- American Meteorological Society