It's possible to use the ideal-gas law to show that the density of the earth's atmosphere decreases exponentially with height. That is, ?=?0exp(?z/z0), where z is the height above sea level, ?0 is the density at sea level , and z0 is called the scale heightof the atmosphere. Hint: This problem requires an integration. What is the weight of a column of air?
A) Determine the value of z0.
B) What is the density of the air in Denver, at an elevation of 1600 m?
C) What percent of sea-level density is this?
D) What is the weight of a column of air?