Final answer:
The statement is true; conduction effectively heats the Earth's surface and nearby air, but is not suitable for heating higher layers of the atmosphere.
Step-by-step explanation:
The statement that conduction is an important mechanism for heating the Earth's surface and the air in contact with it, but not for significant heights into the atmosphere, is true. Conduction is the process of heat transfer through physical contact where the random motion of atoms and molecules transfers energy. It is particularly ineffective for transporting heat over long distances and through the gas of the atmosphere because the molecules are so spread out.
For instance, if conduction were the only method of heat transfer, the Earth would experience extreme temperatures - becoming very cold at night and extremely hot during the day. Additionally, without more efficient heat transfer mechanisms, devices like car engines would be unable to effectively remove excess heat and would overheat.
Heat transfer in the Earth's atmosphere is primarily conducted by other means such as convection and radiation. Convection involves the movement of heated particles within a fluid (which includes gases like air), causing warmer, less dense air to rise and cooler, denser air to sink, thus transferring heat. Radiation is the transfer of heat through electromagnetic waves, such as the warmth we feel from the Sun without any physical medium needed.