Question

Rank the following cloud types in order of decreasing temperature.

1) Hydrogen sulfide ice
2) Ammonia ice
3) Water ice
4) Methane ice
5) Ammonium hydrosulfide ice

Answer 1

The cloud types in order of decreasing temperature are methane ice (stays as gas), followed by ammonia ice, hydrogen sulfide ice, water ice, and then ammonium hydrosulfide ice.

Step-by-step explanation:

To rank the cloud types by decreasing temperature, we need to consider the typical temperatures at which different compounds condense into ices in planetary atmospheres. Given that ammonia (NH3) clouds are prevalent in the upper atmospheres of Jupiter and Saturn, and water ice makes up clouds in Earth's upper atmosphere, we can infer that ammonia ice forms at a lower temperature than water ice, with methane (CH4) remaining gaseous under these conditions. Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) and ammonium hydrosulfide (NH4SH) ices form under certain atmospheric pressures and temperatures that are lower than those for ammonia and water ice but higher than those for methane ice.

Therefore, the order from highest to lowest temperature at which these compounds condense into clouds would be:

1. Methane ice (CH4) - does not condense into ice at these atmospheric conditions and stays as a gas.
2. Ammonia ice (NH3) - condenses at lower temperatures than water ice and composes the primary clouds in outer planet atmospheres.
3. Hydrogen sulfide ice (H2S) - freezes at temperatures higher than ammonia but lower than methane gas, suggesting it condenses at moderately low temperatures.
4. Water ice (H2O) - condenses in Earth's upper atmosphere, indicating that it freezes at relatively warm temperatures compared to the other gases.
5. Ammonium hydrosulfide ice (NH4SH) - likely has a freezing point between those of ammonia and water ice.