Post #3: Don't Let the Altitude Alter Your Attitude

If you check tripadvisor.com while planning a trip to Glenwood Springs, Colorado; you will find an article warning about the dangers of Altitude Sickness. Altitude Sickness can cause an individual to feel dizzy, nauseated, and breathless. It can also cause headaches, chronic nosebleeds and may make your hair, skin and eyes become uncomfortably dry. Altitude sickness is caused by the lack of oxygen and hydration in the air at high altitudes.

The air we breathe is composed of permanent gasses, variable gasses, and particles. Oxygen is one of the permanent gasses found in air. Oxygen makes up 21% of our airs volume. Water vapor is one of the variable gasses found in air and makes up between less than 1 and 4% of the airs volume.  The amount of both oxygen and water vapor in the air is dependent on the volume and pressure of the air.

“Air pressure is the force exerted by the weight of a column of air above a particular location” (Ritter, 2009). The force exerted is determined by the number of times molecules collide, therefore the more molecules in a given area the stronger the force or pressure. As the altitude increases the number of molecules in the air decreases, (Depicted in Figure 1) this is due in part to the decrease in temperature at higher altitudes.



 

Figue 1: As the altitude increases the number of molecules in the air decreases.
(Dr. Allen, Pressure and wind, 2012)

Air pressure can be measured using a barometer or by using the Hypsometric Formula seen in Figure 2. The Hypsometric Formula uses the altitude and temperature of a given location to calculate the atmospheric pressure of that area. The pressure is then defined as low or high when it is compared to the pressure at sea-level. Anything over 1013.2 is considered high pressure. Less than 1013.2 is considered low pressure. (high= >1013.2, low = <1013.2).

 

Figure 2: The Hupsomatic Formula, used to calculate the atmospheric pressure of an area.
(Atmospheric pressure from altitude, 2012)

For example Glenwood Springs has an altitude of 5,763ft (1756m) and an average high temperature in November of 47^oF (8.3^oC). If we plug these numbers into our equation we get 1,013.13atm. Since 1,013.13atm is less than 1013.2 this would be considered low atmospheric pressure. It is important to note that as temperatures change so does the pressure, however even if we change the temperature to 84^oF (28.3^oC) the atmospheric pressure is still only 1013.14atm.

When planning your trip to Glenwood Springs be aware of its’ low atmospheric pressure so that the altitude can’t alter your attitude.  

 

Works Cited

Atmospheric pressure from altitude. (2012, November 11). Retrieved from Ke!san High accuracy Calculation: http://keisan.casio.com/has10/SpecExec.cgi

Colorado: Altitude sickness. (2012, November 11). Retrieved from Trip Advisor: http://www.tripadvisor.com/Travel-g28927-c3597/Colorado:United-States:Altitude.Sickness.html

Monthly Averages for Glenwood Springs, CO (81601). (2012, November 11). Retrieved from The Weather Channel : http://www.weather.com/weather/wxclimatology/monthly/graph/81601

Dr. Allen, C. (2012, November 11). Earth’s atmosphere, radiation balance, and "global warming". Retrieved from University of Colorado Denver: http://clasfaculty.ucdenver.edu/callen/1202/Climate/RadiationBal/AtmoRadBalGlobWarm.html

Dr. Allen, C. (2012, November 11). Pressure and wind. Retrieved from University of Colorado Denver: http://clasfaculty.ucdenver.edu/callen/1202/Climate/PressureWind/PressureWind.html

Ritter, M. E. (2009, October 9). Air Pressure. Retrieved from The Physical Environment: an Introduction to Physical Geography: http://www4.uwsp.edu/geo/faculty/ritter/geog101/textbook/circulation/air_pressure_p_1.html