Stratopause

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title: "Stratopause" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["atmospheric-boundaries"] description: "Upper boundary of the stratosphere" topic_path: "general/atmospheric-boundaries" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stratopause" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Upper boundary of the stratosphere ::

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/85/AthmospherePhisicsAAL.JPG"] ::

The stratopause (formerly mesopeak) is the level of the atmosphere which is the boundary between two layers: the stratosphere and the mesosphere. In the stratosphere, the temperature increases with altitude, and the stratopause is the region where a maximum in the temperature occurs. This atmospheric feature is not exclusive to Earth, but also occurs on any other planet or moon with an atmosphere. According to James Kasting, planets whose atmospheres do not absorb shortwave sunlight, such as Venus and Mars, do not have a Stratosphere and thus have no Stratopause.

On Earth, the stratopause is about 50 km above sea level. The atmospheric pressure is around of the pressure at sea level. The temperature in the stratopause is -2.5 C.

References

References

1. "What is the Stratopause". Actforlibraries.org.
2. (2017). "Atmospheric Evolution on Inhabited and Lifeless Worlds".
3. Andrews, David G.. (2000). "An Introduction to Atmospheric Physics". Cambridge University Press.
4. Schmunk, Robert B.. (April 3, 2025). "Introduction to Clouds". NASA.
5. "stratopause {{!}} meteorology". Encyclopedia Britannica.

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