1. Introduction to Earth and environmental Science

2. What on Earth Are Earth and Environmental Science?
Both Sciences rely on many other sciences.
Earth Science deals with Earth and its neighbors in space Environmental Science studies how humans interact with the Earth and its living things.

3. What kind of Sciences? Some subdivisions of Earth Science
Geochemistry
Geophysics
Geobiology
Paleontology
Oceanography
Meteorology
Astronomy
Main divisions of Earth and Environmental Science
Includes
Geology
Oceanography
Meteorology
Astronomy

4. What is Geology? Geology is a word that means “study of Earth”
Geology is divided into two area:
Includes
Physical Geology
Historical Geology

5. Physical Geology
This is a study of the materials that make up the Earth and the process that shape our planet.
Earth quakes
Volcanoes
Erosion

6. Historical Geology
Interprets the physical and biological changes that have occurred in the past.

7. What is Oceanography?
Oceanography blends the sciences of chemistry, physics, geology, and biology together to help understand the oceans and ocean life.

8. What is Meteorology?
It is the study of the atmosphere and the processes that produce weather and climate.

9. What is Astronomy?
Astronomy is the study of the universe, its formation and evolution. This helps explain our own earth and environment.

10. SOOOOO…….
Where does our understanding of Earth and Environmental Science come from?
It is based on the combination of many sciences that help us understand the world we live in and how to live in it BETTER!

11. Careers in Earth and Environmental Science
Seismologist
Earth Scientists who investigate earthquakes. They determine the location and size of earthquakes and use seismic waves to study Earth’s interior and help in designing earthquake proof structures.

12. Careers Meteorologist
They study how the physical characteristics, processes, and movements of the atmosphere affect the environment.
They use the info to forecast the weather and study weather patterns.

13. Oceanographers
Oceanographers study what makes up oceans, the movement of seawater, and coastal processes, seafloor topography, and marine life.

14. Careers Surveying Technician
They work to measure and map the Earth’s surface.
Assist land surveyors who measure distances, directions, and contours on, above, and even below the Earth’s surface.

15. Careers Commercial Diver
Their work ranges from operating submersibles to helping map the ocean floor.
They perform underwater surveys or carry out underwater rescue and salvage operations.

16. Careers Archaeologist
They excavate, preserve, study, and classify objects and structures from past cultures.
They must be able to identify different types of soil and notice the smallest of changes in soil characteristics.

17. Careers
Astronomer
They use the laws of physics and mathematics to study the universe.
The may use what they know about astronomy to help develop satellites and spacecraft.

18. And, of course, our favorite….

20. How did the Earth become the planet we know / live on?

21. Formation of the Earth
The Earth is one of 8 planets that revolve around the sun.
Scientists understand that the Earth and the other planets all formed during the same time and from the same material as the sun.
This hypothesis is called, “The Nebular Hypothesis”.

22. The Nebular Hypothesis
The nebular hypothesis states our solar system formed from a cloud called the solar nebula.
The solar nebula was made up of hydrogen and helium, with a small amount of heavier elements.

24. The Nebular Hypothesis
Our solar system began as an enormous cloud of dust and gases made mostly of hydrogen and helium with some heavier elements.

25. The Nebular Hypothesis
This cloud is called the nebula
It started to rotate and collapse toward the center of the cloud

26. The Nebular Hypothesis
The cloud began to cool
This cooling caused rocky and metallic materials to form tiny solid particles

27. The Nebular Hypothesis
The particles began to hit each other as the spun around
Repeatedly hitting each other caused some to stick together and form asteroid sized particles

28. The Nebular Hypothesis
The asteroid sized particles eventually stuck to each other forming the inner planets
The lighter particles and gases moved farther away and formed the outer planets

29. The Structure of the Earth
After Earth formed it began to develop layers because of density differences of the materials
Very heavy elements such as nickel and iron began to drift toward the molten center of the planet
Lighter, rocky components floated to the surface

30. Earth’s Major Spheres
Looking closely at the earth from space it can be seen that we are more than just a sphere of rock.
Earth’s oceans and swirling clouds show the importance of water on the planet.

31. Earth’s Major Spheres
The physical environment of Earth is divided into three major spheres:
Hydrosphere
Atmosphere
Geosphere
Our environment is characterized by the continuous interactions of
air and rock
rock and water
water and air.

32. Earth’s Major Spheres There is a fourth sphere The biosphere
This sphere is made up of all the life forms on Earth
It interacts with the three physical spheres

33. Earth’s Major Spheres
So…. Earth can be thought of as consisting of four major spheres:
The hydrosphere
The atmosphere
The geosphere
The biosphere

34. Earth’s Major Spheres Hydrosphere The water portion of the Earth
This includes Oceans, Lakes, Rivers, glaciers, and even underground water
Oceans make up 97% of the water
The other 3% is fresh water

35. Earth’s Major Spheres
Although fresh water only makes up 3% of the total water on the earth, it is very important
Streams, glaciers, and groundwater are responsible for:
Sustaining life
Creating many of Earth’s varied land forms

36. Earth’s Major Spheres Atmosphere
The life-sustaining, thin, gaseous envelope of the planet
It reaches beyond 100 kilometers above earth
But… 90% of it occurs within just 16 kilometers of the surface

37. Earth’s Major Spheres Atmosphere It provides the air we breathe
It protects us from the Sun’s intense heat and dangerous radiation
It gives the sky it’s blue color
If Earth had no atmosphere, then life as we know it could not exist

38. Earth’s Major Spheres Geosphere
The layer of Earth below both the atmosphere and the oceans

39. Earth’s Major Spheres
The geosphere is not uniform so it is divided into three main parts
The three main parts are based on differences in what they are made of (their composition)
It is made up of:
The core
The mantle
The crust

40. Earth’s Major Spheres The core The innermost layer of the Earth
It is located beneath the mantle
It is divided into an
inner core
outer core

41. Earth’s Major Spheres The Inner Core
The solid, innermost layer of the Earth
It is about 1220 kilometers in radius

42. Earth’s Major Spheres The Outer Core
Below the mantle and above inner core
About 2260 kilometers thick
It contains liquid iron
It generates the earth’s magnetic field

43. Earth’s Major Spheres The Mantle
It is located below the crust and above the outer core
It is divided into the lower mantle and the upper mantle
It is about 2890 kilometers thick

44. Earth’s Major Spheres The Upper Mantle
At the top of the Upper Mantle is an area called the Asthenosphere.
Rocks are partially molten or melted
They slowly flow and the crust floats on top of this area

45. Earth’s Major Spheres The Lower Mantle
Below the partially molten part of the upper mantle the rock becomes more dense
This area is what we call the Lower Mantle

46. Earth’s Major Spheres The Crust
This is the thinnest layer of the geosphere
It is thinnest in the ocean floors and thickest at the continents
It is made up of:
The Lithosphere
The Oceanic Crust
The Continental Crust

47. Earth’s Major Spheres
The Lithosphere is special in that it is both part of the Crust and part of the upper portion of the Upper Mantle called the Asthenosphere
It is the rigid outer layer of the earth
The crust is on top of the Lithosphere

48. Earth’s Major Spheres

49. Earth’s Major Spheres Biosphere Includes all life on Earth
It is concentrated to a zone that extends from the ocean floor upward for several kilometers into the atmosphere

50. Earth’s Major Spheres
Plants and animals depend on the physical environment for life
Plant and animal life also do their part to maintain and alter their physical environment

51. Earth System Science
Thus far we have discussed about the Earth’s four main spheres.
Earth Scientists study how these spheres are interconnected.

52. Earth System Science
The way of looking at earth is called Earth System Science. It’s aim is to Understand Earth as a system made up of numerous interacting parts or subsystems.
Instead of looking at just one branch (such as geology) scientist try to put together what we know from all the branches

53. Earth System Science What is a system?
A system can be any size group of interacting parts that form a complex whole.
A natural system is driven by sources of energy that move matter and/or energy from one place to another
Think of car’s cooling system!
Think of your circulatory system!

54. Earth System Science There are two types of systems:
Closed Systems: Energy moves freely in and out of the system, but nothing enters or leaves the system
A car’s cooling system!
Open Systems: Energy and matter freely move in and out of the system
A river system!

55. Earth System Science Earth is a system
The Earth is powered from two energy sources:
The Sun
The Sun drives external processes that occur in the atmosphere, hydrosphere, and at Earth’s Surface
Earth’s Interior
There is heat from when the earth was formed as well as heat generated by the decay of radioactive elements

56. Earth System Science
The parts of Earth’s systems are linked so that one part can produce changes in another part
Lava can come onto the surface and block valleys. This would affect drainage and maybe cause a lake.
Too much ash from a volcanic explosion could block out much of the sun’s heat and light from the Earth
Lava and volcanic explosions could destroy life, yet new lakes and new soil would make way for new life.

57. Earth System Science
The Earth System is characterized by changes over areas smaller than a millimeter to areas thousands of kilometers in size!

58. Earth System Science The Earth System is also characterized by time
Time scales for Earth’s processes can range from time as small as milliseconds to time as large as billions of years!

59. Earth System Science Humans are also a part of the Earth System
Our actions produce changes in all of the other parts of the Earth System
If we do something to the Earth, then the Earth may react, sometimes in unforeseen ways

60. Earth System Science How do we affect our world?
We burn gasoline and coal
We build breakwaters along shorelines
We dispose of our waste
We clear land
All of this is positive for us, but sometimes has a negative affect on the Earth

61. Earth System Science
Environment refers to things that surround and influence a organism
Some are living, some are social, some are non-living
Water, air, soil, rock, temperature, humidity, and sunlight are non-living things

62. Earth System Science
Environmental Science refers to the relationships between people and the natural environment
We can influence natural processes!
We may not be able to stop flooding, but we can control how often it happens by the use of levees, dams, clearing land, and building cities
Sometimes our best ideas can have the wrong affects!
Asswan Dam in Egypt

63. Earth System Science
Resources are an important focus of Earth Scientists
Resources are things that can be used for support or help
Water, soil, metals, non-metals, and energy are all resources

64. Earth System Science There are two kinds of resources
Renewable resources can be replenished over reasonably short periods of time
Water, wind, natural fibers, wood, plants, and animals
Non-Renewable resources cannot be replenished at all or take a very, very long time to be replenished
Iron, aluminum, copper, oil, natural gas, coal
When these are gone, they are gone forever

65. Earth System Science
A greater demand for resources makes them disappear faster
Our population growth is using up some resources very fast!
One way to slow down this loss is to find alternative resources

66. Earth System Science Environmental Problems Humans can cause problems
Significant threats to the environment include air pollution, acid rain, ozone depletion, and global warming
Other threats are: loss of soil to erosion, disposal of toxic wastes, contamination and depletion of water resources

67. Think About It!
Flooding, tornadoes, hurricanes, volcanoes, and earthquakes have caused loss of life and habitat
How do the hydrosphere, atmosphere, and geosphere affect the biosphere?

68. Think About It! Humans dig mines into the crust
Burrowing animals affect the solid earth
How do members of the biosphere affect the geosphere?

69. Think About It!
Humans have polluted both water and air
Man-made dams and those built by Beavers can have a dramatic effect on the flow of rivers
How do members of the biosphere affect the hydrosphere and atmosphere?