[FRIAM] The comparative thickness of the tropospheree

[Nicholas Thompson]

George and I were looking for intuition pumps to help a reader imagine how
very thin the troposphere is.   Here is what we came up with:

Ordered by Type: Too Thin → Best Match → Too Thick

Material / ObjectRelative ThicknessToo Thin or Too Thick?Notes
Weather balloon skin (fully inflated) ~280× too thin Way too thin Soap-film
fragile
Plastic wrap (1 layer) ~7× too thin Too thin Would need ~7 layers
Eyeball tear film ~4× too thin Slightly too thin Very close, poetic
comparison
Party balloon skin (inflated) ~3× too thin Slightly too thin Best easy
everyday match
*Troposphere*
Apple peel ~14× too thick Too thick Best among fruits
Basketball skin ~16× too thick Too thick Similar to soccer ball
Soccer ball skin ~17× too thick Too thick Very close to basketball
Baseball leather skin ~25× too thick Too thick Heavier and thicker still
Tennis ball felt+skin ~37× too thick Too thick Very thick and fuzzy
Navel Orange peel ~70× too thick Way too thick Thickest skin we've discussed



-- 
Nicholas S. Thompson
Emeritus Professor of Psychology and Ethology
Clark University
nthompson at clarku.edu
https://wordpress.clarku.edu/nthompson
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