Question

The height of the mesosphere extends from ____________.
A) 70 to 80 km
B) 110 to 130 km
C) 50 to 85 km
D) 95 to 105 km

Answer 1

Hint: Land, water, living things, and air are the four main subsystems that make up the Earth's structure. "Spheres" refers to all four subsystems. The "lithosphere" (land), "hydrosphere" (water), "biosphere" (living things), and "atmosphere" (air) are the four spheres.

Complete answer:
The atmosphere is separated into layers according to temperature. The troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, and thermosphere are the four layers that make up the atmosphere. The exosphere is an area about 500 kilometres above the Earth's surface.

A) 70 to 80 km : The mesosphere lies 70 to 80 kilometres from the earth’s atmosphere. But this is not the correct answer as the mesosphere ranges from 50 kilometres to 85 kilometres above the surface of the Earth.

B) 110 to 130 km : This range lies in the thermosphere. The thermosphere ranges from around 90 kilometres up to 500 - 1,000 kilometres above our planet. Hence this is not the correct answer.

C) 50 to 85 km : The mesosphere layer is 50-85 kilometres high. This is the layer that separates the stratosphere from the thermosphere. The temperature in the mesosphere drops as altitude rises. The mesopause, which is the coldest naturally occurring location on Earth, is the upper limit of the mesosphere. Hence this is the correct answer.

D) 95 to 105 km : This range lies in the thermosphere. The thermosphere ranges from around 90 kilometres to 500 - 1,000 kilometres above our planet. Hence this is not the correct answer.
The height of the mesosphere extends from 50 to 85 km.

Therefore, the correct option is C) 50 to 85 km.

Note: The majority of atmospheric ozone is concentrated in a stratospheric layer about 9 and 18 miles (15 and 30 kilometres) above the Earth's atmosphere. In the mesosphere, temperature decreases as the altitude increases.