stratosphere

noun

strato·​sphere ˈstra-tə-ˌsfir 

1

: the part of the earth's atmosphere which extends from the top of the troposphere to about 30 miles (50 kilometers) above the surface and in which temperature increases gradually to about 32°F (0°C) and clouds rarely form

2

: a very high or the highest region on or as if on a graded scale

construction costs in the stratosphere

the celebrity stratosphere

stratospheric

ˌstra-tə-ˈsfir-ik 

-ˈsfer-

adjective

stratospherically

ˌstra-tə-ˈsfir-i-k(ə-)lē 

-ˈsfer-

adverb

Did you know?

The stratosphere (strato- simply means "layer" or "level") lies above the earth's weather and mostly changes very little. It contains the ozone layer, which shields us from the sun's ultraviolet radiation except where it's been harmed by manmade chemicals. The levels of the atmosphere are marked particularly by their temperatures; stratospheric temperatures rise only to around 32°—very moderate considering that temperatures in the troposphere below may descend to about -70° and those in the ionosphere above may rise to 1000°.

Examples of stratosphere in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet vaults into the emotional stratosphere in Act Three and stays there till its finish. —Sara Holdren, Vulture, 24 Oct. 2024

Joel Embiid, the Denver Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic and the Phoenix Suns’ Bradley Beal now join him in that stratosphere. —Brett Knight, Forbes, 21 Oct. 2024

The best of Wesselmann, the show seems to imply, ought to be up in that stratosphere, too—or at least closer to it than the current auction record of $10.7 million, set at Sotheby’s New York in 2008. —Sarah Douglas, ARTnews.com, 16 Oct. 2024

Though the comedian already had Girls Trip and The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent under her belt, Haddish credits the Beverly Hills incident with launching her career into a new stratosphere. —Shania Russell, EW.com, 23 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from French stratosphère, probably from stratus stratus (from the zone's layer-like character, compared to stratus clouds) + -o- -o- + -sphère -sphere

Note: The term was introduced, along with troposphère, by the French meteorologist Léon Tesserenc de Bort (1855-1913). See note at troposphere.

First Known Use

1908, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing stratosphere

• the stratosphere

Kids Definition

stratosphere

noun

strato·​sphere ˈstrat-ə-ˌsfi(ə)r 

: an upper portion of the atmosphere above the troposphere where temperature changes little and clouds rarely form