A person's elevation determines many things about his health and lifestyle. For instance, people who live at higher elevations must cook differently because water boils at a lower temperature. They must inflate their tires differently so that the difference in internal and external pressures does not cause the tires to explode. Visitors to new elevations may experience altitude sickness as their bodies adjust to the lower oxygen levels. These are just some of the reasons why people might want to determine the atmospheric pressure at a given elevation. Fortunately, scientists have an equation that can provide this information for you before you ever step foot on higher ground.
Instructions
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1
Determine the elevation level in meters.
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2
Substitute this value into the atmospheric pressure equation: pressure = 101,325(1 - 2.25577 * 10^-5 * elevation)^5.25588.
For example, the atmospheric pressure at 1,500 meters would be determined by the following expression: 101,325(1 - 2.25577 * 10^-5 * 1,500)^5.25588.
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3
Simplify the expression. This is the air pressure in kilopascals.
A person at 1,500 meters is under approximately 84.6 kilopascals of pressure.
