The Great Ocean of Air

Did you know that you live at the bottom of an ocean of air? In that ocean, some things live on the bottom, and others swim at different levels above the bottom. We spend most of our time close to the bottom of our ocean of air.

The ocean of air that surrounds the Earth is called the atmosphere (AT-muhs-sfeer). The atmosphere is a mixture of invisible gases. Two gases make up most of the atmosphere: nitrogen (78.08%) and oxygen (20.95%). The remaining 0.97% is made up of 0.93% argon and 0.03% carbon dioxide (the gas you breathe out).

There are many other materials besides the gases in the atmosphere. The amount of these materials varies from place to place and time to time. Water vapor is one of these materials. Air over a desert has almost no water vapor in it. Air over a tropical rain forest, however, may have as much as 4%. Water vapor usually appears as clouds.

The atmosphere has several layers. The bottom layer is called the troposphere (TROP-uhs-sfeer). Most weather occurs in this layer. The second layer is called the stratosphere (STRAT-uhs-sfeer). It contains ozone, which is a special form of oxygen. Ozone keeps the Earth from receiving too much of the Sun's light. The third layer is called the mesosphere (MEZ-uh-sfeer). It helps protect the Earth from meteoroids. As meteoroids burn up in the mesosphere, a streak of light appears. This is what we call a shooting star. The top layer is called the thermosphere (THUR-muh-sfeer). Satellites orbit the Earth in this layer.

The Bible uses the word "heaven" in at least three different ways. The first is the Earth's atmosphere (Matthew 8:20). The second is space, where the Sun, Moon, and stars are (Genesis 15:5). The third heaven is where God is. Paul was once caught up to that "third heaven" (II Corinthians 12:2). Scientists keep learning about the first and second heavens. One day, Christians will live with God in the third heaven.

---

Copyright © 2014 Apologetics Press, Inc. All rights reserved.

*Please keep in mind that Discovery articles are written for 3rd-6th graders.

This document may be copied, on the condition that it will not be republished in print unless otherwise stated below, and will not be used for any commercial purpose, as long as the following stipulations are observed: (1) Apologetics Press must be designated as the original publisher; (2) the specific Apologetics Press Web site URL must be noted; (3) any references, footnotes, or endnotes that accompany the article must be included with any written reproduction of the article; (4) textual alterations of any kind are strictly forbidden; (5) Some illustrations (e.g., photographs, charts, graphics, etc.) are not the intellectual property of Apologetics Press and as such cannot be reproduced from our site without consent from the person or organization that maintains those intellectual rights; (6) serialization of written material (e.g., running an article in several parts) is permitted, as long as the whole of the material is made available, without editing, in a reasonable length of time; (7) articles, in whole or in part, may not be offered for sale or included in items offered for sale; and (8) articles may be reproduced in electronic form for posting on Web sites pending they are not edited or altered from their original written content and that credit is given to Apologetics Press, including the web location from which the articles were taken. Further, documents may not be copied without source statements (title, author, journal title), and the address of the publisher and owner of rights, as listed below.

For catalog, samples, or further information, contact:

Apologetics Press
230 Landmark Drive
Montgomery, Alabama 36117
U.S.A.
Phone (334) 272-8558

http://www.apologeticspress.org