Energy in the Earth System

Earth's Spheres and Their Interactions

  • The 5 Earth Spheres:

    • Biosphere: Contains all living things, including plants, animals, and humans.
    • Geosphere: Contains rocks and solid earth. Example: Mountains.
    • Atmosphere: Contains air and gases. Example: Oxygen.
    • Hydrosphere: Contains liquid water. Examples: Lakes, oceans, and bodies of water.
    • Cryosphere: Contains frozen water/ice. Examples: Glaciers or a frozen lake.

  • Sphere Interactions:

    • Biosphere and Atmosphere: Plants need air to survive and animals need oxygen to breathe.
    • Biosphere and Geosphere: Animals need land and rocks to construct a home or habitat.
    • Biosphere and Hydrosphere: Animals, plants, and living things need water to live.
    • Hydrosphere and Atmosphere: Water and air work together to sustain life and keep things alive.
    • Hydrosphere and Geosphere: Water and rocks work together to keep land from overflowing.
    • Geosphere and Atmosphere: Rocks and air work together; air keeps living things breathing while rocks hold structures up.

  • Sphere Interactions in a Volcanic Eruption:

    • Geosphere: Volcanoes contain molten rock, soil, and sediments that make up the Earth's crust and interior.
    • Atmosphere: When volcanoes erupt, they release gases directly into the air.
    • Hydrosphere: Volcanic eruptions release water vapor into the air.
    • Biosphere: Interacts with the living organisms surrounding the environment affected by the eruption.

Earth's Surface, Landforms, and Surface Forces

  • Surface Forces:

    • Constructive Forces: Forces that construct and build up land on Earth's surface.
    • Destructive Forces: Forces that destruct or tear down land on Earth's surface.

  • Florida Landforms:

    • Landforms Found in Florida (5 Types): Rivers, Deltas, Lakes, Coastline, and Plain.
    • Landforms NOT Found in Florida (2 Types): Glaciers and Mountains.

  • Weathering, Erosion, and Deposition:

    • Mechanical Weathering: Weathering that happens over long periods, including processes like freezing and thawing.
    • Chemical Weathering: Weathering that happens over short periods and creates or produces new minerals.
    • Deposition: A constructive force that involves laying down sediment in new locations.
    • Erosion: A destructive force that occurs when sediment is carried away or overflowing by wind, water, ice, or gravity.

Energy in the Earth System

  • Electromagnetic Waves:

    • Consist of an electric field and a magnetic field.
    • Three main types of electromagnetic waves travel from the Sun to Earth.

  • Atmospheric Radiation and Energy:

    • Radiation percentage: 25%25\% of the sun's radiation is affected as it goes through the atmosphere.
    • The Greenhouse Effect: Occurs when the heat of the Sun gets trapped in the Earth system like heat inside a greenhouse.

  • Thermal Energy vs. Heat:

    • Heat is NOT thermal energy itself.
    • Heat: The transfer of thermal energy from one object to another.

  • Mechanisms of Heat Transfer:

    • Convection: The transfer of heat by the movement of a fluid. Thermal energy moves within the atmosphere through convection.
    • Conduction: The transfer of heat between two substances that are in direct contact with each other.
    • Radiation: The transfer of energy through space by electromagnetic waves.

Volcanic eruption sphere interactions and atmospheric energy diagrams

Atmospheric Layers, Wind, and Coastal Breezes

  • Layers of the Atmosphere (Closest to Furthest from Earth):

    1. Troposphere: Closest layer to the Earth.
    2. Stratosphere: Second layer from Earth.
    3. Mesosphere: Third layer from Earth.
    4. Thermosphere: Farthest layer from Earth.

  • Air Density and Wind Formation:

    • Warm air is more dense, so it falls.
    • Cool air is less dense, so it rises.
    • Causes of Wind: Warm air expands, becomes less dense, and rises while its pressure/density decreases; cool air then moves in to take its place.

  • Sea Breezes and Land Breezes:

    • Daytime (Sea Breezes): During the day, sea breezes occur because solar radiation warms the land faster than the water.
    • Nighttime (Land Breezes): At night, land breezes occur because the land cools faster than the water.

Geological Processes and Environmental Issues

  • Sinkholes:

    • Occur when weak parts in the Earth break from forming underground structural voids, causing the surface to collapse and make sinkholes.

  • The Ozone Layer and CFCs:

    • Ozone Layer Function: Absorbs energy and protects life on Earth from harmful solar radiation.
    • Impact of Damage: Certain chemicals called chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) have damaged the ozone layer. When the ozone layer is damaged, more ultraviolet (UV) light gets through the atmosphere and harms life badly.

  • Delta Formation:

    • Over many years, sediment carried by flowing water is deposited where the river meets an ocean, forming a delta.