The Spheres of the Earth What are they and How do they interact?
Earth Systems Described *Everything that happens on our planet is part of a complex set of interactions between air, water, land, and life. On a global scale, each part can be thought of as a sphere, roughly the same size and shape as the planet. The 4 parts are called the geosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, and biosphere.
Geosphere “Land” *All of the rocks and “hard material” of the earth *Consists of the core, mantle and crust of the Earth. (The Lithosphere: is the term for earth’s crust) *More Examples: Continents, ocean floor, mountains, volcanoes, rocks, sand, dust, bricks
Contains all of the solid, liquid and gaseous water on Earth. Hydrosphere “Water” All of the Earth’s water Contains all of the solid, liquid and gaseous water on Earth. 97% of the hydrosphere is found in salty oceans. The remainder is found as vapor or droplets in the atmosphere & as liquid in ground water, lakes, rivers, glaciers and snowfields.
Atmosphere “Air” The atmosphere contains all of the Earth’s air and is divided into troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, thermosphere and ionosphere. Examples: Ozone, oxygen, carbon dioxide, nitrogen, Wind
“Life” The biosphere is the collection of all Earth’s life forms. Life is Distributed in major life zones known as biomes: forests, deserts, and marine. EXAMPLES: Humans, animals, plants, microbes (bacteria), Fungus
Interactive Image of the Earth’s Spheres https://www.classzone.com/books/earth_science/terc/content/investigations/es0103/es0103page02.cfm?chapter_no=investigation http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/education/dynamic/session4/sess4_interactions.htm
Class Activity Example: https://www.classzone.com/books/earth_science/terc/content/investigations/es0103/es0103page03.cfm?chapter_no=investigation How do the Spheres interact on Earth? Use the different Earth images provided. In small groups: Identify what parts in the image represent each of the four spheres. (Use the questions on the following slide to work on your image.) 2. Each group will write down their answers for the teacher and then present their findings to the class.
Identifying the Spheres in your Image Use the following questions: List the major features in the image and tell which sphere each one represents. Describe sphere interactions you can infer from the scene. https://www.classzone.com/books/earth_science/terc/content/investigations/es0103/images/es0103_p5_smlfire_b.jpg
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