Temperaturlagen

Temperaturlagen, or temperature layers, are vertically stratified regions in a medium where temperature varies with height or depth, creating distinct bands with relatively uniform properties within each layer. The concept is used in meteorology, oceanography, and planetary science to describe how heat is distributed and transferred in a system. Temperature layering arises from processes such as radiative heating, phase changes, buoyancy-driven mixing, and adiabatic expansion or compression.

In Earth's atmosphere, the main layers are the troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, and thermosphere. The troposphere generally shows a decrease in temperature with increasing altitude and contains most weather phenomena; its upper boundary is the tropopause. The stratosphere, warmed by absorption of ultraviolet radiation by ozone, exhibits a temperature increase with height up to the stratopause. The mesosphere cools with altitude, and the thermosphere experiences heating from solar radiation and energetic particles. These temperature gradients influence cloud formation, stability, and large-scale circulation patterns such as jet streams and weather systems.

In oceanography, temperature layering is often referred to through features like the thermocline, a region where temperature changes rapidly with depth. Above the thermocline, surface waters are relatively warm; below it, deeper waters are cooler. Seasonal shifts, salinity, and geographic location produce variability in the depth and strength of these layers. Temperature layering affects marine ecosystems, nutrient mixing, and oxygen distribution, with implications for fisheries and climate-related processes.

Measurement methods include atmospheric soundings, weather balloons, and satellite observations for the atmosphere, and CTD profiles, Argo floats, and ship surveys for the oceans. Understanding temperaturlagen helps model climate, weather, and environmental dynamics.