Final answer:
Air is composed of approximately 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, and 1% other gases, including argon and trace elements. Understanding the composition is important in sciences like meteorology and environmental science.
Step-by-step explanation:
Air is a mixture of gases that include primarily nitrogen (N₂) and oxygen (O₂), as well as traces of other elements and compounds. The proportion of these gases is quite specific: air contains approximately 78% nitrogen and 21% oxygen, with about 1% of the volume made up by argon and trace amounts of other gases such as carbon dioxide, neon, methane, helium, and water vapor. Gauging the composition of air is essential not only in environmental science but also in various applications such as medical, engineering, and meteorological fields where understanding of atmospheric pressure and partial pressures of gases is imperative.