Question

How does air pressure change as altitude increases in the atmosphere?

Answer 1

Pressure with Height: pressure decreases with increasing altitude. The pressure at any level in the atmosphere may be interpreted as the total weight of the air above a unit area at any elevation. At higher elevations, there are fewer air molecules above a given surface than a similar surface at lower levels.

Answer 2

The higher the altitude, the lower the atmospheric pressure. Lower pressure in turn causes water to evaporate more quickly, and water actually boils at a lower temperature. The percentage of oxygen in the air at two miles (3.2 km.) is the same as at sea level (21%). However, the air pressure is 30% lower at the higher altitude due to the fact that the atmosphere is less dense--that is, the air molecules are farther apart. The important effect of this decrease in pressure is this: in a given volume of air, there are fewer molecules present. This is really just another way of saying that the pressure is lower. This is called Boyle's law.