tropopause

[ trop-uh-pawz, troh-puh- ]

noun

, Meteorology.

1. the boundary, or transitional layer, between the troposphere and the stratosphere.

tropopause

/ ˈtrɒpəˌpɔːz /

noun

1. meteorol the plane of discontinuity between the troposphere and the stratosphere, characterized by a sharp change in the lapse rate and varying in altitude from about 18 km (11 miles) above the equator to 6 km (4 miles) at the Poles

tropopause

/ trō′pə-pôz′,trŏp′ə- /

1. The boundary between the upper troposphere and the lower stratosphere, varying in altitude from about 8 km (5 mi) at the poles to 18 km (11 mi) at the equator.

Word History and Origins

Origin of tropopause¹

First recorded in 1915–20; tropo- + pause

Example Sentences

Jet streams travel in the tropopause—the area between the troposphere and the stratosphere—that hovers between five and nine miles above the Earth's surface.

From National Geographic

Those warm waters fuel convection, with hot, moisture-laden air rising and fueling rain until it hits the tropopause, where the lowest layer of the atmosphere, the troposphere, meets the stratosphere.

From Scientific American

It is above the tropopause, meaning that these are stratospheric winds.

From Washington Post

That makes sense, she adds, because winds and temperature variations make the tropopause a much more dynamic place than the stable ocean channel.

From Science Magazine

Ordinarily, thunderstorm and volcanic plumes alike tend to flatten out at the tropopause, or the “ceiling” of the lower atmosphere marking the threshold of the stratosphere.

From Washington Post