Concept explainers
Evangelista Torricelli was the first person to realize that we live at the bottom of an ocean of air. He correctly surmised that the pressure of our atmosphere is attributable to the weight of the air. The density of air at 0ºC at the Earth’s surface is 1.29 kg/m3. The density decreases with increasing altitude (as the atmosphere thins). On the other hand, if we assume the density is constant at 1.29 kg/m3 up to some altitude h and is zero above that altitude, then h would represent the depth of the ocean of air. (a) Use this model to determine the value of h that gives a pressure of 1.00 atm at the surface of the Earth. (b) Would the peak of Mount Everest rise above the surface of such an atmosphere?
Want to see the full answer?
Check out a sample textbook solutionChapter 14 Solutions
Physics for Scientists and Engineers with Modern, Revised Hybrid (with Enhanced WebAssign Printed Access Card for Physics, Multi-Term Courses)
- How many cubic meters of helium are required to lift a light balloon with a 400-kg payload to a height of 8 000 m? Take Hc = 0.179 kg/m3. Assume the balloon maintains a constant volume and the density of air decreases with the altitude z according to the expression pair = 0e-z/8 000, where z is in meters and 0 = 1.20 kg/m3 is the density of air at sea level.arrow_forwardA horizontal pipe 10.0 cm in diameter has a smooth reduction to a pipe 5.00 cm in diameter. If the pressure of the water in the larger pipe is 8.00 104 Pa and the pressure in the smaller pipe is 6.00 104 Pa, at what rate does water flow through the pipes?arrow_forwardA hollow copper (Cu = 8.92 103 kg/m3) spherical shell of mass m = 0.950 kg floats on water with its entire volume below the surface. a. What is the radius of the sphere? b. What is the thickness of the shell wall?arrow_forward
- Principles of Physics: A Calculus-Based TextPhysicsISBN:9781133104261Author:Raymond A. Serway, John W. JewettPublisher:Cengage LearningPhysics for Scientists and Engineers, Technology ...PhysicsISBN:9781305116399Author:Raymond A. Serway, John W. JewettPublisher:Cengage LearningPhysics for Scientists and Engineers: Foundations...PhysicsISBN:9781133939146Author:Katz, Debora M.Publisher:Cengage Learning
- College PhysicsPhysicsISBN:9781305952300Author:Raymond A. Serway, Chris VuillePublisher:Cengage LearningCollege PhysicsPhysicsISBN:9781285737027Author:Raymond A. Serway, Chris VuillePublisher:Cengage Learning