AQA GCSE Physics 8463
Atomic Structure
Electricity
Energy
Forces
Magnetism and Electromagnetism
Particle Model of Matter
Space Physics
Waves
Forces
Atmospheric pressure
- 2 things to know
- Paper 2
Overview
The atmosphere and how its density falls with altitude, what causes atmospheric pressure and why it decreases with height, pressurised aircraft cabins, a simple model of the atmosphere, a sealed bottle crushed on the way down a mountain, and why a suction cup stays on a window.
What you need to know
Answer each one before you reveal it.
What causes atmospheric pressure on a surface?
Questions from this subtopic
Each one with the model answer underneath.
- 1
Describe what the atmosphere is.
Model answer
It is a layer of air around the Earth that is thin compared with the size of the Earth itself.
- 2
How does the density of the atmosphere change with increasing altitude?
Model answer
It gets less dense as altitude increases.
- 3
Where in the atmosphere is the air most dense?
Model answer
Closest to the surface of the Earth.
- 4
What causes atmospheric pressure on a surface?
Model answer
Air molecules colliding with that surface.
- 5
How does the weight of air above a surface change as the surface is raised higher above the ground?
Model answer
It decreases, because there are fewer air molecules above the surface.
- 6
Explain why aircraft cabins have to be pressurised when flying at high altitude.
Model answer
Atmospheric pressure at that height is too low for passengers to breathe comfortably.
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