ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Earth's atmosphere

Okay kiddo, today we are going to talk about something very important and interesting- Earth's atmosphere!

Earth's atmosphere is like a big invisible blanket covering our planet. It consists of different layers of gases that surround us, and it helps us breathe and protects us from harmful things like the sun's radiation and space debris.

The atmosphere is made up of mainly nitrogen, oxygen, and a little bit of other gases like carbon dioxide, helium, and neon. These gases are floating around us all the time, and we can't see them because they are so tiny.

There are 5 main layers of the atmosphere which are the troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, thermosphere, and exosphere. The troposphere is where we live and the air we breathe is in this layer. The stratosphere is where the ozone layer is, which helps to protect us from the harmful UV radiation from the sun. The mesosphere is where meteoroids burn up, so we don't have to worry about them hitting us on earth.

As you go farther up, the air gets thinner and thinner. In the thermosphere, the air is so thin that it can't carry sound waves, so if someone screamed, you wouldn't be able to hear them! And the exosphere is where the atmosphere slowly fades away and merges with space.

Overall, the Earth's atmosphere is very important for us and it keeps us safe and healthy. We should always take care of it!