Altitude is the elevation of a point or object from a known level or datum (plural: data).

Common data are mean sea level, local ground level (Above Ground Level, or AGL), or
the surface of the WGS-84 geoid, used by GPS. In aviation, altitude is measured in feet.
For non-aviation uses, altitude may be measured in other units such as metres or miles.
Atmospheric pressure decreases as altitude increases. This principle is the basis of
operation of the pressure altimeter, which is an aneroid barometer calibrated to indicate
altitude instead of pressure. It is the fall in pressure that leads to a shortage of oxygen
(hypoxia) in humans on ascent to high altitude.

In aviation, the term altitude can have several meanings, and is therefore qualified by
either explicitly adding a modifier (e.g. "true altitude"), or implicitly through the context
of the communication. Parties exchanging information concerning this topic must be
clear which definition is being used.[1]

True altitude is the elevation above mean sea level. In UK aviation

radiotelephony usage, the vertical distance of a level, a point or an object
considered as a point, measured from mean sea level; this is referred to over the
radio as altitude.(see QNH)[2]
height is the elevation above a ground reference point, commonly the terrain
elevation. In UK aviation radiotelephony usage, the vertical distance of a level, a
point or an object considered as a point, measured from a specified datum; this is
referred to over the radio as height, where the specified datum is the airfield
elevation (see QFE)[2]
Absolute altitude is the height of the aircraft above the terrain over which it is
flying.
Indicated altitude is the reading on the altimeter.
Pressure altitude is the elevation above a standard datum plane (typically,
1013.25 millibars or 29.92" Hg and 15C). Pressure altitude divided by 100 feet is
referred to as the flight level, and is used above the transition altitude (18,000 feet
in the US, but may be as low as 3,000ft in other countries); so when the altimeter
reads 18,000 ft on the standard pressure setting the aircraft is said to be at "Flight
level 180". When flying at a Flight Level, the altimeter is always set to standard
pressure (29.92 / 1013.2). Below the transition level, altitudes are read in
thousands, pronounced "one three thousand" for 13,000, "seven thousand" for
7,000 etc.
Density altitude is the altitude corrected for non-ISA International Standard
Atmosphere (ISA) conditions at which the air density is unequal to ISA
conditions. Aircraft performance depends on density altitude, which is affected by
barometric pressure, humidity and temperature. On a very hot day, density altitude
at an airport may be so high as to preclude takeoff, particularly for helicopters or a
heavily loaded aircraft.

[edit] Altitude regions

Although the term altitude is commonly used to mean the height above sea level of a
location, in geography the term elevation is often preferred for this usage.
Mountain medicine recognizes three altitude regions:[3]

High altitude = 1500 m 3500 m (5000 11,500 ft)

Very High altitude = 3500 m 5500 m (11,500 18,000 ft)
Extreme altitude = 5500 m above

Travel to high altitudes can lead to medical problems, from the mild symptoms of acute
mountain sickness to the potentially fatal high altitude pulmonary oedema (HAPE) and
high altitude cerebral oedema (HACE). These conditions are caused by the profound
hypoxia associated with travel to high altitudes.
The Earth's atmosphere is divided into several altitude regions:[4]