We can't live without him. It surrounds us, giving us the opportunity to breathe. Air… Fertile oxygen contains the beginning of the existence of any individual on the planet. Now we will try to understand in detail what air is. We will also learn from the article what its gas composition is, what its humidity and temperature are.
Life
Life on our planet has existed for several billion years. And scientists have always been interested in the main factors that influenced its origin. It is generally accepted that one of the main reasons is the presence of the planet in the so-called habitable zone. We are talking about its optimal removal from the central star of the system, the period of revolution around the axis, gravity and, of course, the gaseous composition of the atmosphere. Or, in general, its presence. Simply put, it refers to the substance that we breathe. But what is air? And what happens to its humidity with temperature? Let's talk about that.
Definition
Air is a natural mixture of gases. They form the planet's atmosphere. If we talk about the earth, then it mainly consists of oxygen and nitrogen - 98-99% in total. The rest is carbon dioxide, neon, hydrogen and argon. Air is what all creatures need for normal existence and life in general. You can't do without it. So now we know what air is. But why is he so important?
It's all about the oxygen. In the process of respiration, it enters through the blood into the cells of living organisms. This is where the oxidation process takes place, which is necessary for obtaining vital energy. Its composition may vary depending on the height above sea level or the terrain. For example, in cities, the content of carbon dioxide is always higher than in forests. And in the mountains, the amount of oxygen will decrease as the height increases, because it is much heavier than nitrogen. Now we know what air is and what its gas composition depends on. Oxygen is also needed for fuel combustion in everyday life or industry. And using the liquefaction method, inert gases are obtained from it. So, what is air, now it is very clear.
What is air humidity?
Relative humidity is the ratio of the partial pressure of water vapor in a mixture of atmospheric gases to the pressure of saturated vapor at a certain temperature. In the formulas, this indicator is denoted by the Greek letter φ. If we consider absolute humidity, then this is the amount of moisture that is contained inone cubic meter of air. But it is known that at a certain atmospheric temperature, it can only contain the maximum certain amount of liquid. That is, as the temperature increases, this value increases, and as it decreases, it decreases. Therefore, scientists have introduced such a concept as relative humidity. Hygrometers and psychrometers are used to determine indicators.
What is air humidity in terms of ecology? This is a very important element of it. If its value is too low, then people experience increased fatigue, deterioration of the thought process, perception and memory. It is also dangerous because the surface of the mucous membranes dries up, microcracks form on it, into which viruses and bacteria enter. To control this indicator, special sensors and humidifiers are often used. But for some unnecessarily “wet” regions, air conditioners are made. They, on the contrary, can reduce air humidity.
What is air temperature?
Air temperature is one of its properties, which is expressed in a quantitative form. The indicator is constantly changing. In different places on our planet, the temperature is also different. If we consider the height, which is close to the earth's surface, then it varies in a very wide range. For example, in Saudi Arabia in 1922 +58 ºC was recorded. At the same time, at one of the Antarctic stations in 2004, the thermometer showed a record -91 ºC. The air temperature also changes with altitude. And often thishappens randomly.
In most countries of the world, air temperature is measured in degrees. This is done using the Celsius scale. Zero means the temperature at which ice begins to melt, and +100 or more means water boils. But there are still countries that use the scale developed by Fahrenheit. For example, USA. In it, the interval, the lower value of which indicates the melting of ice, and the maximum value, the boiling of water, is divided into 180 degrees. So, now we know why air is important, what it is, and why low humidity is dangerous to he alth.
