Major Domains of the Earth

There are four major domains of the Earth – 

1. Lithosphere: The solid portion of the earth

2. Atmosphere: The gaseous layers that surround the earth
3. Hydrosphere: Water covers a very big area of the earth’s surface and this area is
called the Hydrosphere
4. Biosphere: It is the narrow zone where land, water and air together are found. Which
contains all forms of life.

The earth’s surface can be divided into two main parts-

(i) Continents: The huge landmasses on the earth are called continents.
(ii) Ocean Basins: The huge water bodies on the earth are called ocean basins.

A continent is one of Earth's seven main divisions of land. These are separated by large water bodies.
Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Antarctica, Europe and Australia. (AANA SAANEA).

An isthmus is a narrow strip of land that connects two larger landmasses and separates two water
bodies.
 Part Description
The crust is a solid layer of rock on the surface of the planet. The thickness varies
Crust
between 3 and 30 miles.
The mantle is a semi-liquid layer of magma, or molten rock that moves due to
Mantle
convection currents.
Outer The outer core is the liquid part of the core which has a similar composition to the
Core inner core.
Inner The inner core is the solid part at the center of the Earth. It is made of iron and nickel
Core and has temperatures reaching about 5,500°C.

 The whole earth is made of rocks & minerals. Inside the earth there is a liquid core of
molten rock and on the outside there is a hard crust. If you compare the earth to an egg, the
shell on an egg is like the crust on the earth. The crust is made up of rocks and minerals.
Much of the crust is covered by water, sand, soil and ice.
 A rock is made up of 2 or more minerals.
 When rocks break down into smaller & smaller pieces, they turn into sand.
 Soil is formed of fine rock particles mixed with air, water and particles from dead plant
and animal matter. Rock starts becoming soil the moment it is exposed to the environment.
But it’s a long transformation process from exposed rock to a mature soil.
 A convection current is a process that involves the movement of energy from one place to
another. It is also called convection heat transfer. The convection currents tend to move a
fluid or gas particles from one place to another.