Stratosphere
/ˈstræt.əˌsfɪər/noun
The layer of Earth’s atmosphere above the troposphere and below the mesosphere.
Did you know?The word was coined in modern scientific Latin from Greek roots, and its sibling terms like *troposphere* and *mesosphere* were created in the same era to map the heavens with almost ritual precision.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
Greek
stratós
“layer, stratum”
Ancient Greek
Greek
sphaira
“ball, globe, sphere”
1902
French
stratosphère
“the upper layer of the atmosphere”
1902
English
stratosphere
“the atmospheric layer above the troposphere”