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The standard atmosphere
The standard atmosphere can be thought of as the average pressure, temperature
and air density for various altitudes. It is useful for engineering calculations
for aircraft. It also shows in a general way the pressures and temperatures
to be expected at various altitudes. The standard atmosphere is based on
mathematical formulas that reduce temperature and pressure by certain amounts
as altitude is gained. But, the results are close to averages of balloon
and airplane measurements at various altitudes.
This table give density in slugs per cubic foot because it uses the American
system of altitude in feet, pressure in inches of mercury and temperature
in degrees Fahrenheit. While people often use pounds per cubic foot as
a measure of density in the U.S., pounds are really a measure of force,
not mass. Slugs are the correct measure of mass. You can multiply slugs
by 32.2 for a rough value in pounds.
Altitude |
Pressure |
Temp. |
Density |
(ft) |
(in. Hg) |
(F.) |
slugs per cubic foot |
0 |
29.92 |
59 |
0.002378 |
1000 |
28.86 |
55.4 |
0.002309 |
2000 |
27.82 |
51.9 |
0.002242 |
3000 |
26.82 |
48.3 |
0.002176 |
4000 |
25.84 |
44.7 |
0.002112 |
5000 |
24.89 |
41.2 |
0.002049 |
6000 |
23.98 |
37.6 |
0.001988 |
7000 |
23.09 |
34 |
0.001928 |
8000 |
22.22 |
30.5 |
0.001869 |
9000 |
21.38 |
26.9 |
0.001812 |
10000 |
20.57 |
23.3 |
0.001756 |
11000 |
19.79 |
19.8 |
0.001701 |
12000 |
19.02 |
16.2 |
0.001648 |
13000 |
18.29 |
12.6 |
0.001596 |
14000 |
17.57 |
9.1 |
0.001545 |
15000 |
16.88 |
5.5 |
0.001496 |
16000 |
16.21 |
1.9 |
0.001448 |
17000 |
15.56 |
-1.6 |
0.001401 |
18000 |
14.94 |
-5.2 |
0.001355 |
19000 |
14.33 |
-8.8 |
0.00131 |
20000 |
13.74 |
-12.3 |
0.001267 |
25000 |
11.1 |
-30.15 |
|
30000 |
8.89 |
-47.98 |
|
35000 |
7.04 |
-68.72 |
|
40000 |
5.54 |
-69.7 |
|
45000 |
4.35 |
-69.7 |
|
50000 |
3.43 |
-69.7 |
|
55000 |
2.69 |
-69.7 |
|
60000 |
2.12 |
-69.7 |
|
65000 |
1.67 |
-69.7 |
|
70000 |
1.31 |
-69.7 |
|
75000 |
1.03 |
-69.7 |
|
80000 |
0.81 |
-69.7 |
|
85000 |
0.64 |
-64.8 |
|
90000 |
0.5 |
-56.57 |
|
95000 |
0.4 |
-48.34 |
|
100000 |
0.32 |
-40.11 |
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Source: Aerodynamics for Naval Aviators
Note: This is a summary table. For a more detailed table or a table in
metric units, consult an aerodynamics textbook. Many weather textbooks
also have tables of the standard atmosphere.
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