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 [email protected] https://wordpress.clarku.edu/nthompson
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