Yahoo Answers is shutting down on May 4th, 2021 (Eastern Time) and beginning April 20th, 2021 (Eastern Time) the Yahoo Answers website will be in read-only mode. There will be no changes to other Yahoo properties or services, or your Yahoo account. You can find more information about the Yahoo Answers shutdown and how to download your data on this help page.
Trending News
If hydrogen and oxygen combine to make water. The earth's surface is mostly water.?
Then why isn't there more hydrogen in our atmosphere?
10 Answers
- MooseBoysLv 61 decade agoFavorite Answer
Hydrogen gas is so light that if it is ever naturally free, it zips straight to the upper atmosphere and out into space.
- Anonymous1 decade ago
Two reasons. Firstly, almost all of the hydrogen is combined with oxygen to make the water. Secondly, hydrogen is light enough to escape from the earth's atmosphere. Water, which is the lightest constituent of the atmosphere other than hydrogen, has only a third of the molecular velocity, so tends to stick around, as do all of the heavier constituents.
- Anonymous1 decade ago
Cuz water is completely diffrent from hydrogen. We would only have more hydrogen if all the water in the world was re-split into hydrogen and oxygen
Source(s): skool!!! - jcsuperstar714Lv 41 decade ago
Because very, very little hydrogen or oxygen is in our atmosphere from broken water molecules. Liquid water evaporates to gaseous water. Water vapor condenses to liquid water. It's a natural cycle. The water molecule is very strong, thanks to hydrogen bonding. In fact, the hydrogns are so tightly bound, their nuclei are easily within the oxygen atom's electron cloud and the molecules can often be regarded like hard spheres.
- How do you think about the answers? You can sign in to vote the answer.
- Anonymous1 decade ago
When two H2 batchelorette molecules bump into one O2 batchelor molecule, it's love at first bump. They switch partners and form two water molecules. It's two matches made in the Islamic polygamous tradition, and all the parties to the union live happy ever after. And try as they may, the monogamous Christians can't drag them apart. So nearly all the H2 and O2 in the atmosphere have disappeared into the oceans, and that's where they plan to stay.
- Joseph, IILv 71 decade ago
Because Oxygen LOVES to hook up with the stuff- and keep it "grounded"- as water on the Earth's Surface. -A good thing, too, as I don't think we'd last very long with less water & even LESS Oxygen to breathe!
- 1 decade ago
ask ur chem teacher..
tho i think its because most hydrogen is in the sky..so there's actually ALOT...