U.S. Standard Atmosphere

The U.S. Standard Atmosphere is a series of models that define values for atmospheric temperature, density, pressure and other properties over a wide range of altitudes. The first model, based on an existing international standard, was published in 1958 by the U.S. Committee on Extension to the Standard Atmosphere, and was updated in 1962, 1966, and 1976.

Additional recommended knowledge

Daily Visual Balance Check

What is the Correct Way to Check Repeatability in Balances?

Essential Laboratory Skills Guide

1962 version

The basic assumptions made for the 1962 version were:^[1]

• air is a clean, dry, perfect gas mixture (cp/cv = 1.40)
• molecular weight to 90 km of 28.9644 (C-12 scale)
• principal sea-level constituents are assumed to be:
  • N₂–78.084%
  • O₂–20.9476%
  • Ar–0.934%
  • CO₂–0.0314%
  • Ne–0.001818%
  • He–0.000524%
  • CH₄–0.000 2%.

• assigned mean conditions at sea level are as follows :
  • P = 0.1013250 MN/m2 = 2116.22 psf = 14.696 psi
  • T = 288.15 K = 15 °C = 59 °F
  • ρ = 1.225 0 kg/m3 = 0.076474 lb/ft3
  • g = 980.655 m/s2 = 32.174 1 ft/s2
  • R = 8.31432 J/mol-K = 1545.31 ft lb/lb-mol-deg R.

See also

• Atmospheric models
• NRLMSISE-00
• International Standard Atmosphere

References

• U.S. Extension to the ICAO Standard Atmosphere, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C., 1958.
• U.S. Standard Atmosphere, 1962, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C., 1962.
• U.S. Standard Atmosphere Supplements, 1966, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C., 1966.
• U.S. Standard Atmosphere, 1976, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C., 1976 (Linked file is 17 MiB).

1. ^ Tuve, George Lewis; Bolz, Ray E. (1973). CRC handbook of tables for applied engineering science. Boca Raton: CRC Press. ISBN 0-8493-0252-8.