Because the biosphere plays a key role in the flux of energy from the surface to the atmosphere, it also contributes to the structure of the atmosphere. Three major fluxes are important: the direct transfer of heat from the surface to the atmosphere by conduction and convection (sensible heating), the energy flux to the atmosphere carried by water vapour via evaporation and transpiration from the surface (latent heat energy), and the flux of radiant energy from the surface to the atmosphere (infrared terrestrial radiation). These fluxes differ in the altitude at which the heating of the air takes place and thus contribute to the thermal structuring of the atmosphere. Sensible heating primarily warms the planetary boundary layer (PBL) of the atmosphere. In marine areas, the PBL occurs in the lowest 1 km (3,300 feet); in heavily vegetated areas, the PBL occurs in the lowest 1 to 2 km (3,300 to 6,600 feet); and in arid regions, it occurs in the lowest 4 or 5 km (13,100 to 16,400 feet) of the atmosphere. In contrast, the latent heat of the atmosphere is released when the water vapour is converted into cloud droplets by condensation. Heating by latent energy release generally occurs above the PBL.

On the other hand, heating of the atmosphere by radiation from the surface depends on the density of the atmosphere and its water vapour content. Radiative heating from the surface declines with increasing altitude. The availability of water to evaporate from the surface limits the sensible heating of the air near the surface and so limits the maximum daytime surface air temperature (see below).

Biosphere controls on the planetary boundary layer

The top of the planetary boundary layer (PBL) can be visually marked by the elevation of the base of the clouds. In addition, the PBL can also be denoted by a thin layer of haze often seen by passengers aboard airplanes during takeoff from airports. During the day, the air within the PBL is thoroughly mixed by convection induced by the heating of Earth’s surface. The thickness of the PBL depends on the intensity of this surface heating and the amount of water evaporated into the air from the biosphere. In general, the greater the heating of the surface, the deeper the PBL. Over deserts, the PBL may extend up to 4 or 5 km (13,100 or 16,400 feet) in altitude. In contrast, the PBL is less than 1 km (0.6 mile) thick over ocean areas, since little surface heating takes place there because of the vertical mixing of water. The wetter the air advected into the region and the greater the additional water added by evaporation and transpiration, the lower the height of the top of the PBL. For every 1 °C (1.8 °F) increase in daily maximum surface temperature for a well-mixed PBL, the top of the PBL is elevated 100 metres (about 325 feet). In New England forests during the days following the spring leafing, it has been shown that the top of the PBL is lowered to between 200 and 400 metres (650 and 1,300 feet). By contrast, during the months before the leafing out, the PBL thickens from solar heating as the sun rises higher in the sky and day length increases.

If convective mixing of the air in the PBL is vigorous, convection currents may penetrate through the temperature inversion at the top of the PBL. The cooling of the lifting air initiates the condensation of water vapour and the development of miniscule particles of liquid water called cloud droplets. The small clouds just above the PBL are known as planetary boundary layer clouds. These clouds scatter direct sunlight. As the ratio of diffuse sunlight to direct beam sunlight increases, greater levels of photosynthetic productivity are favoured in the biosphere below. The result is a dynamic synergy between the atmosphere and biosphere.

The landscapes of most human-dominated ecosystems are decidedly “patchy” in their geography (see below). Cities, suburbs, fields, forests, lakes, and shopping centres both heat and evaporate water into the air of the PBL according to the nature of the surfaces involved. Convection and the prospect of breaking through the top of the PBL vary markedly across such heterogeneous landscapes. These upward and downward currents or vertical eddies within the PBL transfer mass and energy upward from the surface. The frequency, timing, and strength of convective weather elements, including thunderstorms, vary according to the patchiness of the land use and land cover pattern of the area. In general, the greater the patchiness of the landscape and the earlier the hour in the day, the more frequent and more intense these rain-producing systems become.

In the absence of an organized storm in the region, the air above the PBL sinks gently and the air below lifts. At the top of the PBL, a small inversion, where temperatures increase with height, develops. This inversion essentially becomes a stable layer in the atmosphere. Emissions from the biosphere below are thus contained within the PBL and may build up below this layer over time. Consequently, the PBL may become quite turbid, hazy, or filled with smog.

When the sinking from above is vigorous, the PBL inversion grows in thickness. This situation has the effect of hindering the development of thunderstorms, which depend on rapidly rising air. This often occurs over southern California, and thus the chance of thunderstorms forming there is small. Emissions from both the biosphere and from anthropogenic activities accumulate in this part of the atmosphere, and pollution may build up to such an extent that health warnings may be required. In locations free of temperature inversions, convection processes are strong enough, particularly during the summer months, that emissions are scavenged and quickly lifted by thunderstorms to regions high above the PBL. Often, acidic compounds from these emissions are returned to the surface in the precipitation that falls.