COMPREHENSION PASSAGE ON "THE ATMOSPHERE" BY: DINZEI MAUREEN MARRIS
THE ATMOSPHERE
The earth has an atmosphere, that is, it is surrounded by air. This atmosphere extends several hundreds of kilometers beyond the earth. The atmosphere is not the same all the way up; for example, above a certain height, men cannot breath it and survive. Eighty kilometers above the earth, the air is so thin that it cannot support an aeroplane. Higher up still, there is a special layer of air which is called the 'Heaviside layer'. When some kinds of radio waves hit it, they bounce off it back to earth again the same way that a ball bounces back to you if you throw it at a wall. In this way, radio programmes cross continents and oceans. But this layer of atmosphere can easily be disturbed by certain kinds of storms. When this happens, the sound from the radio comes and goes and we cannot hear it properly because of noises in the background.
Adapted from the New Oxford Secondary English Course for Junior Secondary Schools, Book 2
EVALUATION
Answer the questions below based on the passage:
- How far above the earth does the atmosphere extend?
- Is the atmosphere the same all the way up?
- Which part of the atmosphere is safe for human beings to breathe?
- At what height can aeroplanes no longer fly?
- What is the 'Heaviside layer'?
- What do some kinds of radio waves do when they reach the 'Heaviside layer' of the atmosphere?
- What can disturb the 'Heaviside layer'?
- What happens to the sound from the radio when the 'Heaviside layer' is disturbed?
Comments
Jss2F
(1)The atmosphere extends several hundreds of kilometer beyond the earth
(2)No, the atmosphere is not the same way up
(3)Down the earth
(4)Eighty kilometers above the earth
(5)Higher up still, a special layer of air
(6)They bounce off it back to earth again
(7)Certain kinds of storms
(8)The sound from the radio comes and goes and we cannot hear it properly
Jss 2 hope
1.The atmosphere extends several hundreds of kilometers beyond the earth.
2.The atmosphere is not the same all the way up.
3.The part of the atmosphere that is safe for human beings to breathe is the a few kilometers from the ground.
4.The height aeroplanes can no longer fly is eighty kilometers above the earth.
5.The heaviside layer is a special layer of air.
6.Some kinds of radio waves hit the heaviside layer,they bounce off it back to the earth again.
7.The heaviside layer can be disturbed by certain kinds of storms.
8.When the heaviside layer is disturbed the sound from the radio comes and goes and we cannot hear it properly because of noises in the background.