The study of Earth’s materials, changes of the surface and interior of the Earth, and the forces that cause those changes.
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Volcanoes
Eruptions of lava and ash can overwhelm populated areas and disrupt air traffic.
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System
Any portion of the universe that can be isolated from the rest of the universe for the purpose of observing and measuring changes
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Closed System
A self-contained system (in which the boundary permits the exchange of energy, but not matter, with the surroundings).
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OPEN SYSTEM
Energy and matter flow in and out of the system
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Closed System
What kind of system is the earth?
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Atmosphere
The gas that envelops the Earth and is one of the reasons that it can support life
Relatively shallow compared to the Earth’s Geosphere
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Hydrosphere
A dynamic mass of water that is continually on the move, evaporating from the oceans to the atmosphere, precipitating to the land, and running back to the ocean again.
Includes all of water in and on the Earth
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Biosphere
The sphere that includes all life on earth and a key part of the Carbon Cycle
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Geosphere
The Earth after its formation, differentiated into the Crust, Mantle, and Core.
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Troposphere
The base is warmer than the uppermost portion because the base is heated by the Earth’s surface that absorbs heat.
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STRATOSPHERE
Beyond the tropopause
This is where airplanes travel
The site of the ozone layer that absorbs the sun’s UV rays
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Tropopause
The outer boundary of the troposphere
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Mesosphere
Extends upward from the stratopause
The coldest temperatures anywhere in the atmosphere occur at the mesopause.
One of the least explored regions of the atmosphere
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Thermosphere
Above the mesosphere but has no well-defined upper limit
Highest part of the atmosphere
Temperatures increase due to the absorption of very short-wave, high-energy solar radiation by nitrogen and oxygen atoms
The International Space Station orbits the Earth within the middle of the thermosphere, between 330 and 435 kilometres (205 and 270 mi)
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Northern Hemisphere
known as the land hemisphere of the hydrosphere
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Southern Hemisphere
Known as the water hemisphere of the hydrosphere
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Pacific Ocean
Largest and deepest ocean
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Indian Ocean
the third largest ocean in the world
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Atlantic Ocean
Second largest Ocean
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Artic Ocean
The smallest and shallowest of the world’s oceans
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Antarctic Convergence
The meeting of currents near Antarctica
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Planetary Differentiation
The process that created the Earth’s layered structure
• The denser material sinks to the center (forming the core)
• The less dense materials floated to the top forming the crust
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Physical Properties
The geosphere classified by ________
Lithosphere
Asthenosphere
Mesosphere
Outer core
Inner core
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Chemical Properties
The geosphere classified by ___________
Crust
Mantle
Core
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Oceanic Crust
Composed of basaltic rocks
The denser and thinner crust
Younger
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Continental Crust
It is composed of granitic rocks
Thicker and less dense crust
It is older than the other crust
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Mantle
The thickest layer of the geosphere (83% of the earth’s volume)
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Mohorovicic Discontinuity
The boundary between the Crust and Mantle
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Andrija Mohorovicic
The boundary between the crust and mantle IS NAMED AFTER this seismologist
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Core
Is mostly made of iron and nickel
16% of the earth’s volume
Hottest part of the geosphere (by chemical property)
* also the densest part of the earth
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Crust
Above the mantle
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Gutenberg Discontinuity
The boundary between the mantle and the core
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Beno Gutenberg
The boundary between the mantle and the core is NAMED AFTER this seismologist
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Primary wave
Passes through solid and liquid
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Shear wave
\ does not pass through liquid
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Lithosphere
contains the uppermost mantle and the crust
Is rigid and breaks due to stress and the site of most earthquakes
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Lithospheric plates
large fragments of the lithosphere
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Asthenosphere
“Weak” (Asthenos)
The lithosphere “floats” on top of this layer
Convection is also thought to occur here
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Mesosphere
the lower portion of the mantle
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Outer core
Is considered a “liquid layer”
Shear waves do not travel through it
It circulates via convection, which generates the Earth’s magnetic field
Studied by 91 people
