INTERNATIONAL STANDARD ATMOSPHERE

Aerospace vehicles can be classified into two categories: Atmospheric vehicles and space
vehicles. Under Atmospheric vehicles we have aircrafts, airplanes, seaplanes, helicopters,
gliders, UAVs etc that operate within the earth's sensible atmosphere and under space
vehicles there are Rockets, satellites, deep space probes, interplanetary probes, interplanetary
vehicles etc operate outside the sensible atmosphere. However the space vehicles encounter
the earth's atmosphere both while blasting off from the surface and also during the re-entries
as well as during recoveries after completing their missions. In case of planetary probes, then
it may encounter the atmosphere of other planets like Venus, mars, Jupiter etc. Since all the
aerospace vehicles are operating in some or the other atmosphere, their design and
performance is influenced by the atmospheric properties of that particular atmosphere.

Let us consider the properties of earth's atmosphere. We know that the earth is completely
surrounded by a thin blanket of air called atmosphere and it is retained by the earth's
gravitational forces. The average mass of the atmosphere is found to be around 5.15×10 18 kg.
Out of this, around 50% of the mass is said to be concentrated below 5.6 km (18,000ft).
Further 75% of the mass is found to be under 11km (33,000ft), next the 90% is below 16km
(52,000ft), Lastly, 99.999997% is within 100km (3,30,000ft) from the ground. Beyond
100km, the effect of gravity almost vanishes and this marks the beginning of the outer space.

Since the percentage of the mass or the concentration of the mass is constantly varying with
altitude, even the properties of air like the pressure, temperature, density and viscosity also
vary with altitude. Since the atmosphere is dynamically changing with altitude, it will have a
detrimental effect on the performance of all the air vehicles operating within the earth's
atmosphere. It will negatively affect the efficiency of the airplane engine and also influence
the aerodynamic capability of the aircraft. Further, they affect the total performance of the
aircraft.

First let us consider how the atmospheric properties are affecting the design of any air
vehicle. Explain the design of aircrafts and space vehicles like rockets and missiles. Aircrafts
will have streamlined and pointed nosecone whereas rockets will have a rounded and blunt
nosecone. This is from the aerodynamic design point of view.

Let us consider an example of an aircraft taking off from a runway at sea level and climbing
to attain an altitude of 10,000ft from the ground. The standard pressure and temperature at the
sea level is 1bar and 150C. But when it reaches an altitude of 10,000ft, the pressure and
temperature are around 0.0697bar. This decrease in pressure will affect the density to reduce
which falls from 1.23kg/m3 at sea level to 0.905 kg/m3. Reduction in density or pressure will
have the following effect:

1. Reduce the thrust generated by the engine

2. Reduction in the aircrafts lifting capability. Reduced atmospheric pressure alters the
production of lift. Reduced density means lesser molecules of air flowing around the
airplane’s wings to generate lift. The aircraft’s lifting capability is decreased.
 3. Reduced atmospheric pressure alters the fuel/air ratio. Reduced density, in this case, is
responsible for less number of molecules of air entering the cylinder. This upsets the
optimum ratio required between aircraft fuel and air molecules, to maintain efficient
flight.
4. Increase in temperature of a parcel of air creates hyperactivity amongst the air
molecules; the molecules are energized and thus behave in a hyper manner to utilize
this extra energy. The motion of the air molecules becomes highly erratic, and they
collide with each other. These collisions expand the total volume of that specific
parcel of air, thus decreasing density. If an aircraft in flight enters from a parcel of air
having a temperature of 20 degree Celsius, into a parcel of air having a temperature
of 40 degree Celsius (while maintaining the same altitude), its performance would be
significantly decreased. The increase in temperature gives way to decreased air
density, which in turn affects the aircraft performance characteristics in terms of
reduced lifting ability and reduced mass of air entering the cylinders for combustion.
If ISA-plus temperatures are excessive, aircraft may not climb at the anticipated rate
and/or may be unable to maintain altitude.

Since the atmospheric properties are dynamically changing with altitude, the performance
will also change with every altitude. In that case, it becomes mandatory for the pilot to know
the conditions of the atmosphere before making any flight plan. For this, the pilot should
have enough information regarding the possible values of the atmospheric variables which
will be encountered in the direction of flight. This will enable the pilot to calculate the
changes in the thrust of the engine at every altitude and this will help the pilot to maintain an
optimum thrust settings at every altitude.

Not only to calculate the performance of aircrafts, atmospheric values are also required for
the design and calibration of altimeters, transponders, encoders etc. In order to achieve this,
we should have enough information regarding the values of pressure, temperature, density,
viscosity etc at different altitudes right from the sea level. For this purpose, aviation and
metrological authorities have come up with a standard atmospheric model which gives the
information of temperature, density, pressure at different altitudes for sea level. In fact, many
atmospheric models have been developed which provides a table with the values of
atmospheric parameters like temperature, density, pressure at different altitudes. The models
may be
1. The US Standard Atmosphere
2. The International Standard Atmosphere
3. Jet standard atmosphere
4. NRLMSISE-00 is a recent model from NRL often used in the atmospheric sciences
For aviation propose, International Civil Aviation Organization has recommended the use of
International Standard Atmosphere (ISA) as a standard model to calculate the
performance of aircrafts and other aviation instruments. ISA is an hypothetical atmospheric
model which provides a table with average values of pressure, temperature, density, viscosity
at various levels of altitude.

ISA is hypothetical model because it doesn't consider the effect of water vapour, wind,
turbulence, season, wind, turbulence, moisture, water vapour, and even on solar sunspot
activity. To take all these variations into account when considering the design and
performance of the flight vehicle is impractical. These values are obtained by experiments
conducted using experimental balloons and sounding rockets combined with mathematical
model of the atmosphere. There are several different atmospheric models compiled by
different agencies at different times, each using slightly different experimental data. For all
practical purposes, the differences are insignificant below 30km., which is the domain of all
contemporary aircrafts.

Along the altitude, all the parameters of atmosphere vary. Pressure and density decrease with
altitude. But, temperature exhibits a very complicated variation profile as compared to the
pressure and density. In certain regions, the temperature is constant and in some regions the
temperature shows a gradual incline and declining profiles. This variation in temperature
provides a useful metric to distinguish between layers. The parameters are usually measured
using sounding balloons and sounding rockets. In this way, Earth's atmosphere can be divided
(called atmospheric stratification) into five main layers. Excluding the exosphere, the
atmosphere has four primary layers, which are the troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere,
and thermosphere. From highest to lowest, the five main layers are:

 Exosphere: 700 to 10,000 km (440 to 6,200 miles)

 Thermosphere: 80 to 700 km (50 to 440 miles)
 Mesosphere: 50 to 80 km (31 to 50 miles)
 Stratosphere: 12 to 50 km (7 to 31 miles)
 Troposphere: 0 to 12 km (0 to 7 miles)
Since the properties of the atmosphere are continuously varying with altitude and also to find
the properties like p, T density, we have to first define the meaning of altitude and types of
altitudes.

DEFINITION OF ALTITUDE
Intuitively, we all know the meaning of altitude. We think of it as the distance above the
ground. But to be used in engineering, it has to be precisely defined. There are 3 different
altitudes. Geometrical Altitude, Absolute altitude and geopotential altitude.

Geometrical Altitude (hG) - It is the geometric height measured above the ground from the
sea level.

Absolute altitude (ha) - It is the height measured from the centre of the earth to any point
above the ground. If r is the radius of the earth, the ha= r+hG. Absolute height is important for
space flights, because the local acceleration due to gravity changes with height ha.

Geopotential Altitude (h) - We shall define this later.

 Fig : Definition of Altitude

The profile of the atmosphere is basically classified into different layers. This differentiation
is caused due to the changes in the temperature with altitude. Based on the variation of the
temperature the layers have been categorised.

Troposphere: The troposphere is hotter near the Earth’s surface because heat from the Earth
warms this air. As the altitude increases the number of air molecules decreases, thus the
average of their kinetic energy decreases. The results is a decrease in air temperature with an
increase of altitude.

As the altitude increases, the air temperature decreases. This is because as the altitude
increases the mass concentration decreases. This causes the pressure to reduce eventually
reducing the density. With decrease in density, the collisions between the molecules also
decrease which reduces the average temperature of the atmosphere. Hence, the temperature
reduces along the troposphere.

The Stratosphere has a layer of ozone, called the ozone layer. This layer absorbs most of the
ultraviolet radiation from sunlight. This results in the stratosphere being warmer. Though the
temperature increases, it still be freezing in nature.

The Mesosphere, like the troposphere layer, has a decrease in temperature with altitude

because of the decreases in the density of the air molecules.

The Thermosphere is warmed by the absorption of solar X-rays by the nitrogen and oxygen
molecules in this outer layer. Thus, the temperature of this layer increases with altitude.

The reason it's actually colder is because, as you go up in the atmosphere, the Earth's
atmosphere feels less pressure the higher up you go. So as the gas in the atmosphere rises it
feels less pressure, which makes it expand. When the gas expands it does some work. And
and if it's doing work, it must be losing some energy; and if it loses energy, its temperature
must drop because we define temperature as the average energy of the particles. Therefore, if
the energy of the particles is lower, the temperature must be lower.

That's why, at altitude, the temperature appears to fall. In space, outside the earth's
atmosphere, if you're facing the Sun, you can actually fry. That's why space suits are
specially designed in order to keep people from getting too hot in the sunny bits but also
prevent them from becoming too cold in the non-sunny bits.

As you learned in the previous section, the composition of gases is mostly the same throughout
the first 100 km of our atmosphere. This means if we measure the percentages of different gases
throughout the atmosphere, it will stay basically the same. However the density of the gases and
the air pressure do change with altitude; they basically decrease with increasing altitude. The
property that changes most strikingly with altitude is air temperature. Unlike the change in
pressure and density, changes in air temperature are not regular. A change in temperature with
distance is called a temperature gradient.

The atmosphere is divided into layers based on how the temperature in that layer
changes with altitude, the layer's temperature gradient (Figure 15.4). The temperature
gradient of each layer is different. In some layers, temperature increases with altitude
and in others it decreases. The temperature gradient in each layer is determined by the
heat source of the layer. The different temperature gradients in each of the four main
layers create the thermal structure of the atmosphere.
There are several layers of the atmosphere. The first layer is the troposphere. It is the
closest to the ground and is sometimes referred to as the lower atmosphere. The second
layer is the stratosphere, and is sometimes referred to as the upper atmosphere. Most
of the important processes of the atmosphere take place in one of these two layers.
About three-fourths of the gases of the atmosphere are found in the troposphere
because gravity pulls most of the gases close to the Earth's surface. As with the rest of
the atmosphere, 99% of the gases are nitrogen and oxygen. The other 1% is other
gases.
The thickness of the troposphere varies around the planet. Near the equator, the
troposphere is thicker than at the poles, since the spinning of the Earth tends to shift air
towards the equator. The thickness of the troposphere also varies with season. The
troposphere is thicker in the summer and thinner in the winter all around the planet. At
the poles in winter, the atmosphere is uniformly very cold and the troposphere cannot be
distinguished from other layers. The importance of this feature of the atmosphere will
become clear when we learn about ozone depletion.
Earth's surface is a major source of heat for the troposphere. Where does the heat come
from? Nearly all the heat comes from the sun, either directly or indirectly. Some
incoming sunlight warms the gases in the atmosphere directly. But more sunlight strikes
the Earth's rock, soil, and water, which radiate it back into the atmosphere as heat,
further warming the troposphere. The temperature of the troposphere is highest near the
surface of the Earth and declines with altitude. On average, the temperature gradient of
the troposphere is 6.5°C per 1,000 m (3.6°F per 1,000 feet) of altitude.
Notice that in the troposphere, warm air is beneath cold air. Since warm air is less dense
and tries to rise, this condition is unstable. So the warm air at the base of the
troposphere rises and cool air higher in the troposphere sinks. For this reason, air in the
troposphere does a lot of mixing. This mixing causes the temperature gradient to vary
with time and place. For reasons that will be discussed in the next section, rising air
cannot rise above the top of the troposphere. The rising and sinking of air in the
troposphere means that all of the planet's weather takes place in the troposphere.
At the top of the troposphere is a thin layer called the tropopause. Temperature in the
tropopause does not change with height. This means that the cooler, denser air of the
troposphere is trapped beneath the warmer, less dense air of the stratosphere. So the
tropopause is a barrier that keeps air from moving from the troposphere to the
stratosphere. Sometimes breaks are found in the tropopause and air from the
troposphere and stratosphere can mix.

The stratosphere rises above the tropopause. When a volcano erupts dust and gas that
makes its way into the stratosphere, it remains suspended there for many years. This is
because there is so little mixing between the stratosphere and troposphere. Pilots like to
fly in the lower portions of the stratosphere because there is little air turbulence.
In the stratosphere, temperature increases with altitude. The reason is that the direct
heat source for the stratosphere is the Sun. A layer of ozone molecules absorbs solar
radiation, which heats the stratosphere. Unlike in the troposphere, air in the stratosphere
is stable because warmer, less dense air sits over cooler, denser air. As a result, there is
little mixing of air within the layer.
The stratosphere has the same composition of gases as the rest of the atmosphere, with
the exception of the ozone layer. The ozone layer is found within the stratosphere at
between 15 to 30 km (9 to 19 miles) altitude. The thickness of the ozone layer varies by
the season and also by the latitude. The amount of ozone present in the ozone layer is
tiny, only a few molecules per million air molecules. Still, the concentration of ozone is
much greater than in the rest of the atmosphere. The ozone layer is extremely important
because ozone gas in the stratosphere absorbs most of the Sun’s harmful ultraviolet
(UV) radiation.
Above the stratosphere is the thin stratopause, which is the boundary between the
stratosphere below and the mesosphere above. The stratopause is at about 50 km
above the Earth's surface.

Temperatures in the mesosphere decrease with altitude. Since there are very few gas
molecules in the mesosphere to absorb the Sun's radiation, the heat source here is the
stratosphere below. The mesosphere is extremely cold, especially at its top, about -90°C
(-130°F).
The air in the mesosphere is extremely thin: 99.9% of the mass of the atmosphere is
below the mesosphere. As a result, air pressure is very low. Although the amount of
oxygen relative to other gases is the same as at sea level, there is very little gas and so
very little oxygen. A person traveling through the mesosphere would experience severe
burns from ultraviolet light since the ozone layer which provides UV protection is in the
stratosphere below them. And there would be almost no oxygen for breathing! Stranger
yet, an unprotected traveler's blood would boil at normal body temperature because the
pressure is so low.
Despite the thin air, the mesosphere has enough gas that meteors burn as they enter
the atmosphere (Figure 15.6). The gas causes friction with the descending meteor,
producing its tail. Some people call them "shooting stars". Above the mesosphere is
the mesopause. Astronauts are the only people who travel through the mesopause.
The outermost layer of the atmosphere is the exosphere. There is no real outer limit to
the exosphere. If you continued traveling farther out from the Earth, the gas molecules
would finally become so scarce that you would be in outer space. There is so little
gravity holding gas molecules in the exosphere that they sometimes escape into outer
space. Beyond the atmosphere is the solar wind. The solar wind is made of high-speed
particles, mostly protons and electrons, traveling rapidly outward from the Sun.

The thermosphere is the outer layer of the Earth's atmosphere, extending from
about 53 miles to more than 370 miles above the surface. The temperature
increases rapidly in this layer due to the absorption of huge amounts of incoming
high energy solar radiation by atoms of nitrogen and oxygen. This radiation is
then converted into heat energy and temperatures can climb in excess of 2700
(degrees)F.

Even though the temperature in the thermosphere is very high, objects passing
through it would not get hot. Heat is transferred to an object through molecular
collisions, and the atmosphere is so thin at these high altitudes, that very few of
the widely-spaced fast-moving molecules would collide with the object, resulting
in a transfer of only small quantities of heat.
 The atmosphere's temperature is the most important property controlling its structure. The
air in the first few miles of the atmosphere, the troposphere, does not significantly absorb
solar radiation, instead it is warmed by contact with the ground. The surface heated air
expands as it warms, becomes less dense than surrounding cooler air and rises as buoyant
and turbulent bubbles. This is convection and is the main process by which the troposphere
mixes and heats

Imagine an isolated bubble of air heated by the ground and bobbing upwards. As it climbs
the pressure falls and so the bubble expands to equalise its pressure with the air around it.
To expand, the bubble must exert a force on the surrounding air and move it away. The work
done requires energy and the only source is the internal molecular energy or heat content of
the bubble's air. The internal energy decreases and the temperature, which is purely the
measure of it, falls*

The bubble will rise until its temperature is the same as the surrounding air. If we visualize
the atmosphere as made up entirely of such bubbles we see that they would rise and
descend until a natural equilibrium state is reached where the temperature falls smoothly
with increasing height**.

The warm air after heated up from the surface rises up and gets collected below
stratosphere. It cannot rise beyond stratosphere because the temperature of the air in the
stratosphere is higher than the air in the tropopause. So in the tropopause, the air gets
trapped between the troposphere and the stratosphere. Since that air cannot raise or lower
down there is no mixing between the other layers and the temperature remains constant.
Only of there is mixing due to temperature difference the temperature will change otherwise
the temperature remains constant.

The Stratosphere is home to the unstable cousin of Oxygen called Tri-

Oxygen, popularly known as Ozone. 
Short wave UV rays react with oxygen molecules to continuously form
ozone with heat as the byproduct.
Again Ozone disintegrates under UV radiation, upon absorption (because of
it's low stability).
And heating up the layers in the process.

From around 12 km upward the concentration of Ozone rises steadily till

about 43 km, where it is most abundant. So this explains the constant rise
in temperature.

Ozone also is a green house contributor and absorbs the infrared radiation
reflected off of earth's surface, again adding to the heat.

And to add to this temperature inversion can trap greenhouse gases for
longer time in the stratosphere. Again contributing to the rise in
temperature.

In this region the air actually warms with height. Ozone is concentrated in
this part of the atmosphere and it absorbs ultraviolet light from the Sun.
More light is absorbed at higher altitudes compared to the
lower stratosphere, so the temperature increases.

1. A large amount of UV rays are stopped here , which releases heat

as one of its byproducts.
Now coming to the point, when the sun rays and other cosmic rays try to
penetrate the atmosphere, their heat gets traped in its upper layer like
stratosphere and thermosphere.
Air is all around us, but we cannot see it. Gravity from the Earth pulls air down - this is called air
pressure. We don't feel this pressure because our bodies push an equal amount of pressure
outward. This graph shows how air density and air pressure changes with altitude (the distance
above sea level). Barometers are used to measure air pressue in milibars.