1. Chapter 2-1 Notes (Forces Shaping the Earth)
I. Inside the Earth
Earth had different layers that consists of:
Core – center of the earth (hot iron and nickel)
Mantle – a layer of hot, dense rock (1,770 miles)
Magma – melted rock that flows to the surface
Crust – outer layer w/ thin rocky shell
II. Shaping the Earth’s Surface
Plate Tectonics- huge slabs of rock that move under the earth (1 inch per year)
1. Plates collide (convergent) = mountains and volcanoes
2. Plates slide along (transform) = earthquake and fault
3. Plates pull apart (divergent) = Mid-Atlantic Ridge
Weathering and Erosion are major forces of changing the earth’s
surface

2. Chapter Notes 2-2 Landforms and Water Resources
Types of Landforms
Mountains are the highest landform, hills are lower and rounded. (lie in the ocean too!)
B. A valley is a stretch of land lower than the land on either side. Canyons are steep-sided lowlands that rivers cut through.
C. Other landforms are flat areas such as:
1. Plains are low-lying flat land.
2. Plateaus are also flat but have higher elevations.
Some landforms are defined w/ their relationship w/ water. isthmus (2), island (4), peninsula (3)
Off the coast of a continent lies a plateau called a continental shelf. Deep cuts called trenches lie in the ocean.

3. Chapter Notes 2-2 The Water Planet
II. Bodies of Water
A. 70% of the earth’s surface is water.
B. 97% of the planet’s water is salt water. (oceans & seas)
Much of the freshwater is frozen in ice covered polar regions.
Some groundwater filters through the soil and gathers in aquifers.
Large inland bodies of freshwater are called lakes.
Long, flowing bodies of water are called rivers with many of them having tributaries.
Water cycle – process of water moving from oceans, to the air, to the ground, and back to the oceans.

4. Chapter Notes 2-3 Climate Regions
I. Effects on the Climate
Sun, wind and water influence the earth’s climate.
Weather – short-term changes in temperature, wind , and air moisture.
Climate long-term, predictable patterns of weather for a region
II. Climate Zones (5 Major Zones)
Tropical – warm temp., heavy rainfall, and dense rainforest
Dry – warm or mild temps., very low rainfall (Deserts)
Mid-latitude (temperate) – Humid Continental, Mediterranean,
High-latitude (polar) – Subarctic, Tundra, Ice cap
Highland – changes w/ altitude or elevations (Mountains)