Why don't we squeeze under the weight of the atmosphere?
What comes to mind when we hear the word "air"? Weather events like rain, snow, full or seasonal temperatures? Whatever comes to mind, most of us think of air as an abstract concept. But the air also has a mass.
Scientists explain that we don't compress under the weight of the atmosphere because the air outside of us exerts pressure inward, while our organs, such as the lungs in our bodies, exert pressure outward, along with blood pressure.
What comes to mind when we hear the word "air"? Weather events like rain, snow, or full or seasonal temperatures? Regardless of what comes to mind, most of us think of air as an abstract concept. But the air also has mass.
The gases that make up the atmosphere, i.e., the air, are 78% nitrogen and 21% oxygen. The remaining 1% consists of gases such as argon, hydrogen, helium, neon, methane, crypton, xenon, carbon dioxide, and ozone. The total mass of all these gases is approximately 5.1 catrillion tonnes (5.1×1018 lograms). That's the mass of an adult Indian elephant, weighing an average of 5,100 kilogrammes.
How does the earth carry so much weight?
The earth evenly distributes the weight of the atmosphere. The term pressure is used to describe the force affecting the unit area. Outdoor air pressure below 0 °C at sea level is defined as "1 atmosphere.".
Because of the atmospheric pressure, the force affecting every 6.5 cm2 area on Earth is approximately equal to the weight of a 6.8 kg-mass bovling ball. So you can imagine a 6.8-kg bovling ball standing on your shoulder in an area of just 6.5 cm2. If the air hovered just above our heads, the weight would surely crush us.
But air is everywhere: above our heads, under our feet, around our arms and legs, and even inside our bodies because we breathe. Scientists explain that we don't compress under the weight of the atmosphere because the air outside of us exerts pressure inward, while our organs, such as the lungs in our bodies, radiate this pressure outward, along with our blood pressure.
Resources :
- https://bilimgenc.tubitak.gov.tr/makale/atmosferin-agirligi-altinda-neden-ezilmiyoruz
- https://wonderopolis.org/wonder/How-Much-Does-the-Sky-Weigh
