[am4show have='p9;p58;' guest_error='Guest error message' user_error='User error message' ]

Planetary Atmospheres

A planet’s atmosphere acts like a living blanket—it protects, shapes, and sometimes transforms the world beneath it. Some planets, like Venus, have thick, scorching atmospheres that trap heat; others, like Mars, have lost most of their air to space. Earth’s own atmosphere keeps our planet habitable, shielding us from radiation and regulating temperature. By comparing different planetary atmospheres, astronomers can uncover how gases are gained, lost, and recycled over time, and how sunlight, gravity, and chemistry together control weather, climate, and habitability.

In this lesson, you’ll explore why atmospheres form, how they evolve, and what they reveal about a planet’s history and potential for life.

Watch the Science Lesson

Recording posted 11/19/25!

Do the Assignments

Please download the Student Handout (use the button above) for specific homework and quiz questions assigned for this week.

Homework

Work through the assigned set of review questions, quantitative problems, and quiz questions. 

Space Podcast

Students choose a space-related podcast episode to listen to and write a short summary in their journal. 

Stargazing!

Attend live or virtual stargazing event and record your observations—what you saw, how you identified objects, and what surprised or interested you! These entries help connect you with valuable learning experiences with real astronomers.

Want to know what’s up in your night sky tonight? Use the free Stellarium app and also visit skymaps.com (download the map for your hemisphere) to help you identify three objects and two constellations visible from your location tonight. 

You can also use the Skygazer's Almanac poster (I have one on my wall for the current year, as shown in the video below. If they are sold out for your latitude, please wait until December when they roll out the new posters for the upcoming year.) 

Lab Project Activity

Planetary atmospheres range from the dense, stormy skies of Venus and Saturn to the Moon’s nearly airless exosphere. In this lab, you’ll use real data and simple calculations to explore how scientists study these worlds, uncovering how energy moves, weather forms, and why some planets keep their gases while others lose them.

Supplemental Videos

The first video below is a hands-on experiment where you get to simulate the atmospheres on different planets. The second is a NASA video of what the atmosphere looks like from the International Space Station. Enjoy!