Question

What happens to the air pressure as you go higher in the atmosphere?

1 The air pressure gets higher because there is less air above you.
2 The air pressure gets lower because there is less air above you.
3 The air pressure gets lower because there is more air above you.
4 The air pressure remains the same.

Answer 1

A. The air pressure gets higher because there is less air above you.

Answer 2

Pressure Drops as Altitude Rises: As altitude rises, pressure drops. The total weight of the air above a unit area at any elevation can be perceived as pressure at any elevation. There are fewer air molecules above a given surface at higher elevations than at lower elevations.