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EARTH AS THE LARGER ENVIRONMENT: EARTH SYSTEMS

i. A system is a group of things that regularly interact or are interdependent and that
together form a unified whole.

ii. The Four major Earth Systems:

 The geosphere is the solid Earth and all its related parts.
 The atmosphere is the envelope of gases that surround Earth.
 The hydrosphere is the water in the oceans, lakes, rivers, underground and in
permanent ice accumulations.
 The biosphere is the life that inhabits the earth and evidence of past life.

iii. Energy, Matter and Systems

 In understanding the aspects of the earth systems, we need to know and understand
how they work such as how energy and matter are transferred between them, how
they are stored, moved around, and transferred in and out of the systems.
 The transfer of energy and movement of matter in systems commonly occur in ways
that make systems appear to be unchanging--- to be in a steady state.
 Some Role of Energy on Earth’s Systems:
- Radiation from the sun heats the atmosphere and ocean water
- Radioactive elements in minerals decay and heat Earth’s interior
- Chemical reactions convert radiation from the sun into stored chemical energy in
green plants (photosynthesis).
 Matter is all physical substances; it is also stored in the systems, moved around in
them and transferred among them. Example: Carbon (stored in body as component of
organic compounds and stored in rocks of geosphere, in gases of the atmosphere and
in water as dissolved carbonate ions.) Carbon is an element with many essential
roles in Earth systems.
 Reservoirs, Flux, and Residence Time: Places where energy or matter is stored in
systems are called reservoirs. Rocks are the Earth’s largest carbon reservoir. Earth’s
oceans are a water reservoir, earth’s atmosphere is an oxygen reservoirs and the
earth’s interior is a heat reservoir.
 Flux is the rate at which these transfers take place (from one reservoir to another)
Example: the flux of carbon from the atmosphere to plants---at a rate of 120 billion
tons (metric ton) per year.
 Residence Time= Reservoir size divided by flux in, is the average amount of time it is
contained in a specific reservoir.

iv. Types of systems: Systems that allow energy and matter to be transferred in and out are
open systems. Closed systems are those that allow only energy to be transferred in or
out. Virtually all natural systems are open. Because open systems are also constantly
changing, they are dynamic systems.

v. Geosphere (Lithosphere- in other books)

 is the solid Earth and all its related parts. In detail, it is complicated and even includes
liquid components deep within the Earth.
 Basic parts: Core, Mantle and crust.
  Core: the innermost part of geosphere. The inner part of core is very hot, but it is solid
because of the pressures and made up of metallic iron and nickel. The outer core is also
composed of iron and nickel but because the pressures are lower, it is liquid. Earth’s
magnetism originates in its core.
 Mantle: makes up most of the geosphere, has moderate density because it contains iron
and magnesium along with lighter elements, silicon and oxygen. Most of the mantle is
solid but there is a part in the upper mantle (asthenosphere) that can slowly flow (thick
syrup) Asthenosphere is unstable because of temperature variations—material slowly
sinks, rises, and moves from place to place. (convection currents)
 Crust: is the thinnest layer in the Earth’s internal structure. Types of Crusts: Oceanic
crust ( under ocean)----- 5 to 8 km thick, composed of iron, magnesium, calcium, silicon,
and oxygen, continental crust ( developed continents)------ average of 50 km thick and
contains variety of light elements; silicon and aluminum ( most abundant)
 Lithosphere: composed of rigid oceanic crust and continental crust and the upper most
mantle. It is part of the geosphere that can and does break because of its rigidity.
 Rock cycle: Rocks are the solid part of the geosphere, which are aggregates of one or
more minerals. A mineral is a naturally occurring inorganic solid made up of an element
or a combination of elements that has an ordered arrangement of atoms and a
characteristic chemical composition. Rocks are constantly changing--- Rock cycle
illustrated how rocks change. Types of Rocks involved with Rock cycle: Igneous rocks
are those form from molten material (magma if it is inside the Earth and lava if it is
erupted onto Earth’s surface)

vi. Hydrosphere
 Is all the water on and near the Earth’s surface, It includes water frozen in glaciers
and the polar ice caps, water streams and lakes, and water in the oceans and even
it includes the water in the geosphere near Earth’s surface---- ground water.
 It has many roles in Earth systems, very essential for life --- it effectively stores heat
from the sun and transfers it around the world. Water cycle illustrates the earth
system interactions. ( Assignment: look for the water cycle or hydrologic cycle
and study it)
 The largest reservoir in the hydrosphere is the world ocean. Oceans cover 71 percent
of Earth’s surface and contain 97.3 percent of all the water in the hydrosphere---
1.23 billion cubic km ( 295 million cubic miles), oceans average 3.7 km in depth and
reach maximum depths of 11 km such as trenches ( this depth is greater than the
height of Mt. Everest, the tallest mountain above sea level). 86 percent of
atmospheric water is evaporated from the oceans and rest from the land and
transpired by plants.

vii. Atmosphere
 Is the envelope of gases (air) surrounding Earth, it is very dense and people cannot
see or smell it but can feel it. Clouds float about in the atmosphere and falling
meteoroids burn up in the atmosphere.
 It is the most dynamic system on Earth. Each day’s changing weather is the most
striking example of the atmosphere’s very dynamic nature.
 Composition: mostly a mixture of nitrogen and oxygen, and some small amount of
carbon dioxide and argon

viii. Biosphere
  Is all life on Earth, it is present underground, in soils and rocks, scattered through all
parts of the hydrosphere, and floats or flies around in the atmosphere.
 It is important part of what makes Earth a unique planet in the solar system.
 Life Organization: New organisms, species, continue to be discovered each year.
 Species are groups of interbreeding populations that cannot make fertile offspring
with other similar groups.
 Many scientists classify all known species into 3 domains and 5 kingdoms or
categories.
 3 Domains: Archaea, Bacteria (Eubacteria) and Eukarya (this is according to the cell
structure).
 5 Kingdoms: Monera, Protista, Fungi, Plantae and Animalia.

How Science studies Earth Systems?

 The scientific method is an approach to ask and answer questions that scientists use
to explore and explain the way Earth systems interact and change. It is also a way of
solving problems that everyone can use in their daily lives. (C/O previous discussion)

**Earth systems and people are closely connected. They provide resources that people need
to fuel, build, or grow virtually everything they use each day.

** People affect Earth systems and Earth systems affect people.

Earth as the larger Environment: THE SUMMARY

A. Earth’s Spheres:
Atmosphere- composed of gases and it is very thin
Hydrosphere- all the parts of the earth that composed of water
Lithosphere-the solid part of the earth composed of the core, mantle and
the crust
Biosphere- the part of the earth that dwelled by living things or living
organisms.
B. Natural Resources:

> all raw materials produced by natural processes (geologic & chemical
processes)
> it includes soils, metallic & non-metallic minerals, sources of energy
( such as coal,
petroleum or crude oil), plants, animals, water, air, rocks, etc.
> all of these found on the earth's surface and subsurface
C. Living Natural Resources (Plants & Animals)
> majority of it found at the earth's tropical belt ( along the equatorial
line)
> equatorial line: humid and warm climates with wet and dry seasons; 60%
of the
species found here
D. Two Major Groups or Classifications of Earth's Natural Resources
 Renewable Natural Resources- can be replenished or replaced over a short
period of time
Examples: plants, animals for food, natural fibers
for
 Clothing, forest products, energy source such
aswater,
Wind and sun
Non-renewable Natural Resources- maybe replenished through a long period
of time
and formed through very slow processes
examples: fossil fuels, coal & crude oil,
metallic minerals (iron, gold, copper, etc)
E. Another important earth's Resource: LAND
> Land classifications: a. Usable ( 49%)> 6%- arid land, 8%- tropical forest,
11%- crop
Land, 10%-grazing land, 14%-forest/arid land
b. Non-usable (51%)> ice, snow, deserts, deserts' mountains

> Land Problem: Conversion of marginal land to cropland and area for human
habitation
(housing subdivisions)

F. Most widely used earth's Resources: ENERGY

> 82%- Non-renewable --- 35% crude oil, 27% coal, 17% natural gas (methane,
butene),
3% nuclear power
> 18% Renewable---------- 5% hydropower, 13% biomass

> Alternative Energy Source:

1. Geothermal Plants (Tiwi, Albay & Mount Apo, Davao)
2. Solar Energy ( Japan used this kind of energy)
3. Windmills ( European Countries used this for Dairy
farms)
> Energy Problem:
>> Near depletion of non-renewable energy and the pollution that it bring to
the atmosphere
THE EARTH as a Planet >> only known living planet in the solar system.

Movement of the Earth:

1. Rotation--- earth rotates on its own axis, once a day and produced the period of
daytime and night time, it tilts on its axis at 23 ½ degrees

2. Revolution--- earth is another motion at its orbit around the sun once every 365 days,
an orbit is elliptical and counter-clockwise, and this motion and the tilt causes the
occurrence of the seasons on earth.

3.Precession--- the 3rd and very slow motion, change the earth's angle of tilt, turned for a
period of 26,000 years, it was described similar to a spinning top; the cause of this: gravity
of moon, sun, and other celestial bodies in the solar system and earth's rotation caused the
earth to tilt.

The Earth's Moon:

> Diameter of the moon: 3,475 km (¼ of earth's 12,751 km diameter)
> Moon’s density: 3.3 times that of water (water’s density= 1.0 g/ cubic meter)
> Surface gravity of the moon: 1/6 that of the earth that is why we weigh lighter on the
moon than we weigh on earth.

Earth-Moon Relationship:
 moon is the only known satellite of the earth
 travels with the earth around the sun, at the same time circling the earth once
every month
 direction of the moon's motion: counter clockwise ( when view from above)
 motions of earth and the moon and the relative position of the sun will result to
two significant events: PHASES OF THE MOON & SUN-MOON ECLIPSES

Sun-Earth-Moon Relationships and Tides:

 Tides are results of the movement of ocean waves on the surface which can be
seen along the seashore as the rising and falling of seawater level
 Because gravitational forces coming from the moon or the joint forces of the
moon and sun on the earth's ocean, the water, which faces the moon, can bulge
because of attraction forces from moon, the bulge is greater at the side facing the
moon and it is lesser at the side away from it.
 Oceans produce two opposing bulges (at 24 hours rotation): 2 high tides and 2
low tides
 Sun and moon are aligned its joint gravitational forces that will produced bigger
bulges---SPRING TIDES – a very high tide
 Sun and moon pull at right angles on the earth's oceans will produced very low
tides called NEAP TIDES.