What is the atmosphere made of, and how does energy move through it?
Describe the layered structure and composition of the atmosphere and explain how energy is transferred by radiation, conduction and convection, including how surfaces absorb and reflect insolation.
A Regents answer on the atmosphere and energy transfer: the layered structure (troposphere to thermosphere) and temperature profile on the Reference Tables, the composition (nitrogen, oxygen, trace gases), the three modes of heat transfer (radiation, conduction, convection), and how surface color and texture affect the absorption and reflection of insolation, with worked exam questions.
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What this topic is asking
The Regents wants you to describe the layered atmosphere (using the Reference Tables temperature and pressure profile) and its composition, and to explain the three modes of energy transfer (radiation, conduction, convection) and how surface properties control the absorption and reflection of insolation.
The structure of the atmosphere
The Reference Tables Selected Properties of Earth's Atmosphere page plots temperature and pressure against altitude and names the layers and the tropopause and stratopause boundaries. A common task is to read the temperature at a given altitude or to name the layer.
What the atmosphere is made of
By volume, dry air is about 78 percent nitrogen and 21 percent oxygen, with the remaining 1 percent mostly argon, plus trace carbon dioxide and variable water vapor. The trace gases matter far beyond their amount: carbon dioxide and water vapor are the main greenhouse gases, and ozone in the stratosphere shields the surface from ultraviolet radiation.
The three modes of energy transfer
How surfaces absorb and reflect insolation
Not all surfaces respond to incoming radiation (insolation) the same way:
- Good absorbers are dark, rough and dull surfaces; they absorb most of the radiation that hits them and heat up the most. Good absorbers are also good radiators (they re-emit energy well).
- Good reflectors are light-colored, smooth and shiny surfaces; they reflect most radiation (high albedo) and stay cooler. Fresh snow and water at low Sun angles reflect strongly.
This is why a dark asphalt road gets far hotter than a white concrete path under the same Sun, and why melting bright snow (which reflects) exposes darker ground (which absorbs), speeding further warming.
Try this
Q1. Name the most abundant gas in the atmosphere and its approximate percentage. [1 point]
- Cue. Nitrogen, about 78 percent.
Q2. State which surface absorbs more insolation: a dark, rough surface or a light, smooth one, and explain. [2 points]
- Cue. The dark, rough surface; dark, dull, rough surfaces are good absorbers, while light, smooth, shiny surfaces reflect most radiation.
Exam-style practice questions
Practice questions written in the style of NYSED exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.
Regents (style)1 marksPart A. Which surface will absorb the most insolation and reach the highest temperature on a sunny day? (1) a smooth, light-colored surface (2) a rough, dark-colored surface (3) a polished mirror (4) fresh white snow. Justify your choice.Show worked answer →
A 1-point multiple-choice question. The answer is (2).
A rough, dark-colored surface is the best absorber of radiation, so it heats up the most. Light-colored, smooth and shiny surfaces (1, 3, 4) are good reflectors (high albedo), so they absorb less and stay cooler; fresh white snow reflects most insolation. The trap is forgetting that dark, rough, dull surfaces are good absorbers, while light, smooth, shiny surfaces are good reflectors and good radiators.
Regents (style)3 marksPart C. (a) Name the three layers of the atmosphere a weather balloon passes through first, from the surface up. (b) Identify the most abundant gas in the atmosphere. (c) Explain how energy is transferred by convection in the troposphere.Show worked answer →
A 3-point extended-response question.
(a) 1 point: troposphere, then stratosphere, then mesosphere (the thermosphere is highest). Accept troposphere and stratosphere as the first two with mesosphere third.
(b) 1 point: nitrogen (about 78 percent of the atmosphere by volume).
(c) 1 point: the surface heats the air above it; the warm air becomes less dense and rises, cooler denser air sinks to replace it, and this circulation (a convection current) transfers heat upward through the troposphere.
Markers reward the correct layer order, nitrogen as most abundant, and the rising-warm/sinking-cool convection mechanism.
Related dot points
- Explain humidity, dewpoint and relative humidity, use the Reference Tables dewpoint and relative humidity charts from dry-bulb and wet-bulb readings, and relate cooling to condensation, cloud and precipitation formation.
A Regents answer on atmospheric moisture: the difference between dewpoint and relative humidity, how to read the Reference Tables dewpoint and relative humidity charts from the dry-bulb temperature and the wet-bulb depression, why air cooled to its dewpoint condenses, how clouds and precipitation form on condensation nuclei, and the saturation idea, with worked exam questions.
- Classify air masses, describe the weather at warm and cold fronts and around high- and low-pressure systems, and interpret weather maps and the Reference Tables station model.
A Regents answer on weather systems: how air masses are classified (maritime/continental, tropical/polar), the weather at cold and warm fronts, high-pressure (clear, sinking, diverging) versus low-pressure (cloudy, rising, converging) systems, the typical west-to-east movement across New York, and how to decode the Reference Tables weather station model, with worked exam questions.
- Explain how ocean surface currents form (winds, the Coriolis effect) and how they redistribute heat, moderate coastal climates and connect to density-driven deep circulation.
A Regents answer on the oceans: how prevailing winds and the Coriolis effect drive surface currents into gyres, how warm and cold currents redistribute heat and moderate coastal climates (for example the Gulf Stream), the difference between surface and density-driven deep circulation, and the link to the water specific heat on the Reference Tables, with worked exam questions.
- Explain how the tilt of Earth's axis and its revolution change the angle and duration of insolation through the year, producing the seasons, the solstices and the equinoxes.
A Regents answer on insolation and the seasons: why the 23.5 degree axial tilt and Earth's revolution change the angle and duration of insolation, the solstices and equinoxes, the Sun's path across the sky at New York latitudes, and why summer is warm even though Earth is near aphelion.
- Explain the greenhouse effect and the role of greenhouse gases, distinguish natural from human-enhanced climate change, and describe the evidence for and consequences of recent global warming.
A Regents answer on the greenhouse effect and climate change: how greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide, methane, water vapor) trap outgoing infrared energy and warm the surface, natural versus human-enhanced warming from burning fossil fuels, the evidence (rising carbon dioxide and temperature, melting ice, rising seas) and consequences, with worked exam questions.
Sources & how we know this
- Reference Tables for Physical Setting/Earth Science (2011 edition) — New York State Education Department (2011)
- Regents Examination in Physical Setting/Earth Science — New York State Education Department (2026)