Department of Education

National Capital Region

S CHOOLS DIVIS ION OFFICE
MARIK INA CITY

Earth Science
First Quarter-Module 2:
Earth Systems

Writer: Ed-Angelo P. Tan

Illustrator: Christine Ann G. Faraon
Cover Illustrator: Christine Ann G. Faraon

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 What I Need to Know

This module was designed and written with you in mind. It is here to help you
understand that Earth being a system is composed of different subsystems that
enable different processes of matter to flow. The scope of this module permits it to
be used in many different learning situations. The language used recognizes the
diverse vocabulary level of students. The lessons are arranged to follow the standard
sequence of the course. But the order in which you read them can be changed to
correspond with the textbook you are now using.

The module will discuss the four (4) systems that comprise the Earth. It
includes parts and processes involved with each system.

After going through this module, you are expected to

1. define the concept of a system;
2. recognize Earth as a system composed of subsystems; and
3. explain that Earth consists of four subsystems, across whose boundaries
matter and energy flow (S11ES-Ib-4).

What I Know

Choose the letter of the best answer. Write the chosen letter on a separate sheet of
paper.

1. Which of the following defines what geosphere is?

A. Earth’s solid body
B. Frozen water on Earth
C. All liquid water on Earth
D. A 100 km thick layer of gas

2. To what subsystems do all living things belong?

A. Atmosphere
B. Biosphere
C. Geosphere
D. Hydrosphere

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 3. Where is Earth’s largest fresh water resource found?
A. In the seas
B. In the oceans
C. In the glaciers
D. In the spring (bukal)

4. What does the term “atmo” means?

A. Air
B. Land
C. Life
D. Water

5. What the term “bio” means?

A. Air
B. Land
C. Life
D. Water

6. Which of the following best describes Earth’s water?

A. It is saltwater
B. It is in the atmosphere
C. It is in rivers and lakes
D. It is in freshwater underground

7. What does “geo” in geosphere mean?

A. Air
B. Land
C. Life
D. Water

8. What does “hydro” in hydrosphere mean?

A. Air
B. Land
C. Life
D. Water

9. Photosynthesis shows interaction between biosphere and what subsystem?

A. Atmosphere
B. Biosphere
C. Geosphere
D. Hydrosphere

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10. What is Earth’s largest system?
A. Atmosphere
B. Biosphere
C. Geosphere
D. Hydrosphere

11. What is Earth’s outermost system?

A. Atmosphere
B. Biosphere
C. Geosphere
D. Hydrosphere

12. Which of the following is true about Earth’s four subsystems?

A. All are not important for life.
B. All are parts of the atmosphere.
C. All are interacting with each other.
D. All are independent from one another.

13. Approximately what percentage of Earth’s water is available for human

use?
A. 1%
B. 3%
C. 50%
D. 100%

14. What do you call the water that falls from the atmosphere to the earth in
solid or liquid form?
A. hale
B. precipitation
C. rain
D. snow

15. Why is fresh water important for life on Earth?

A. the biosphere needs water
B. we need water to grow food
C. without it people will get sick and die
D. all of the above

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 Lesson Earth Systems

Earth is a unique planet in our solar system being the only one to contain and
maintain diverse forms of life. Earth has a set of interactive and interconnected
systems working with one another in many ways. The uniqueness of this planet may
be attributed to its formation and origin. Most importantly, it is brought upon by
several factors which make Earth the only known habitable planet in the solar
system.

What’s In

The characteristics that make Earth habitable are mostly controlled by the
properties it obtained during its formation and the laws that govern the natural
world. To understand these characteristics and how they affect the formation of life,
you must first understand how the universe and the solar system came to be and
how the planets formed. You also need to remember the factors that sustain life in
our planet.

Read the information provided below to give you some insights about the
formation of the universe, solar system, and planets:

• The most accepted theory explaining the origin of the universe is the Big Bang
Theory. It postulated that 13.8 billion years ago, the universe expanded from
a tiny, dense, and hot mass to its present size and much cooler state.

• The Big Bang Theory has withstood the tests for expansion: 1) the redshift, 2)
the abundance of hydrogen, helium, and lithium, and 3) the uniformly
pervasive cosmic microwave background radiation-the remnant heat from the
bang.

• There are several theories describing the origin of our solar system. These
include the Nebular Hypothesis, Encounter Hypothesis, Accretion Theory,
Capture Theory, and the currently accepted theory which is the Protoplanet
Hypothesis.

• The Protoplanet Hypothesis describes the origin of our solar system as a

slowly rotating gas and dust cloud that contract due to gravity. This leads to

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 several events happening including the formation of a proto-Sun, high speed
collisions of large objects and between protoplanets, and the formation of gas
planets due to solar winds.

• The five (5) essential factors to sustain life on a planet. Remember the acronym
W-A-T-E-N, which stands for Water, Atmosphere, Temperature, Energy, and
Nutrients. These factors should be of the right amount for it to sustain life.
Too much or too less of a factor will hinder formation of life in a certain planet.

What’s New

What is a system?

A system is a set of interconnected components that are interacting to form a

unified whole. Earth is a system composed of subsystems.

Figures 1-2. Earth as system composed of subsystems

Earth system is essentially a closed system. It receives energy from the sun
and sends back some of this energy to space. A closed system is a system in which
there is only an exchange of energy but no exchange of matter.

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 Figure 3. Earth as a closed system.

Activity 1
Label the different processes and phases of water involved in the water cycle. (Hint:
there are six (6) processes in the water cycle.). Put your answers on a separate sheet
of paper.

F. __________ C. __________

A. __________
E. __________

B. __________
D. __________

Figure 4. Water Cycle.

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 What Is It

Earth system is composed of four (4) subsystems. Remember the acronym B-

A-H-G which stands for Biosphere, Atmosphere, Hydrosphere, and Geosphere. These
systems help Earth sustains life (biosphere) by regulating the temperature
(atmosphere), helping in chemical reactions through the presence of water
(hydrosphere), and replenishing the nutrients on Earth’s surface (geosphere). These
systems are all interacting. Each system is unique and has its own individual
processes, yet each system interacts with the others.

Biosphere. The biosphere includes all life forms on Earth. It embodies all
ecosystems—from the soil to the rainforest, from mangroves to coral reefs, and from
the plankton-rich ocean surface to the deep sea.

For most of the life on Earth, the base of the food chain comprises
photosynthetic organisms. During photosynthesis, CO2 is taken from the
atmosphere, while oxygen is released as a byproduct. The biosphere is a pool of CO2,
and therefore, an important part of the carbon cycle.

Figure 5. The Carbon Cycle.

Sunlight is necessary for life, but not for isolated and complex ecosystems
that prosper in the deep-sea floor at depths beyond the reach of it. The bottom of the
food chain for such ecosystems is called chemosynthetic organisms. Instead of

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sunlight, these organisms use energy from hydrothermal vents or methane seeps
(methane seeping through rocks and sediments) to create/produce simple sugars.

Near the hydrothermal vents on the sea

bottom. Beneath the volcanic mountains on
the seabed, beyond the reach of the light
energy of sun, there is an ecological system
relying on the organic compounds created by
chemotrophs.

Figure 6. Hydrothermal vent with chemosynthetic organisms.

Atmosphere. The atmosphere is the

thin gaseous layer that covers Earth.
The present atmosphere is
composed of 78% nitrogen (N), 21%
oxygen (O2), 0.9% argon, and some
amount of other gases. One of the
most necessary processes by which
the heat on the Earth's surface is
redistributed is through
atmospheric circulation. There is
also a stable exchange of heat and
moisture between the atmosphere
and the hydrosphere through the
hydrologic cycle.

Figure 7. Layers of the Atmosphere.

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 The atmospheric circulation is the large-scale movement of air together with
ocean circulation. This is how thermal energy is redistributed on the surface of
Earth. Earth's atmospheric circulation changes from year to year, but the large-scale
structure of its circulation remains constant.

Figure 8. Atmospheric Circulation.

Hydrosphere. About 70% of Earth’s

surface is covered with liquid water
(hydrosphere) and much of it is in the form
of ocean water. 3% of Earth's water is
fresh: two-thirds are in the form of ice, and
the remaining one-third is in streams,
lakes, and groundwater. The oceans are
necessary sinks for CO2 through direct
exchange with the atmosphere and
indirectly through the weathering of rocks.

Figure 9. Percentage of water on Earth.

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 Heat is absorbed and redistributed on the surface of the Earth through ocean
circulation.

Figure 10. The Ocean Circulation.

Source: "Ocean Circulation Implicated in Past Abrupt Climate Changes." The Earth Institute - Columbia
University. Last modified June 30, 16. https://www.earth.columbia.edu/articles/view/3335.

Geosphere. The geosphere is the part of Earth system which includes Earth’s solid
surface, its interior, rocks and minerals, landforms, and the processes that mold
Earth's surface. Earth itself is not a perfect sphere. It is what is called an oblate
spheroid.

Figure 11. The layers of the Earth.

Source: "Geosphere - Earth's Spheres: ACCS." Google Sites. Accessed August 6, 2020.
https://sites.google.com/site/earthsspheresaccs/home/geosphere.

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 Earth's interior is like a layer cake that has different layers that change in
mineral composition, thickness with depth and density.

• Earth’s crust is composed of various rocks such as igneous, metamorphic,

and sedimentary rocks. It has two identifications. The oceanic crust and
continental crust. The oceanic crust is the part of the crust submerged in
the ocean while the continental crust is the part unsubmerged in the ocean
(land masses).

• Directly below the crust is the mantle. It has two parts. One is the upper layer
that is less dense and relatively brittle. The other one is a lower (much thicker)
layer that is denser and plastic (it deforms without breaking). The combined
part of the crust and uppermost solid part of the mantle form the brittle upper
layers of the Earth's interior called the lithosphere. The upper mantle is also
called the asthenosphere - the highly viscous, mechanically weak, and
ductile region of the upper mantle of the earth. The mantle composes the
largest volume of Earth's interior.

• The region beneath the mantle is called the core, and consists of two parts, a
liquid outer core, and a solid inner core. The core is basically made up of
iron, with a small amount of nickel. The liquid iron in the outer core is
especially important in that it is the primary source of the Earth's magnetic
field. Earth's magnetic field deflects most of the solar wind, which contains
charged particles that may strip away the ozone layer that protects the earth
from harmful ultraviolet radiation.

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 What’s More

Activity 2
Using the illustration below, identify how energy and mass (matter) is exchanged
among the subsystems. Use different types of lines and boxes to differentiate between
matter or materials and energy. Some arrows were already provided.

Figure 1.4. Water Cycle.

Rubrics:
NOT NEEDS MEETS EXCEEDS
EVIDENT IMPROVEMENT EXPECTATION EXPECTATION
(0-74 pt.) (75-80 pts.) (81-90 pts.) (91-100 pts.)
Can identify
and explain
how mass
and energy is
exchanged
among the
components
of a system.

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 What I Have Learned

Activity 3
Identify the following terms being asked. Write your answers on the space provided
before each number. Put your answers on a separate sheet of paper.
_________________ 1. Earth has this percentage of fresh water.
_________________ 2. These organisms do not require sunlight to live.
_________________ 3. Earth system consists of four (4) subsystems:
_________________ 4. Earth system is an example of what type of system.
_________________ 5. These organisms produce their own food using sunlight.
_________________ 6. Most of Earth’s atmosphere is composed of this element.
_________________ 7. Heat is absorbed and redistributed on the surface of Earth
through this process.
_________________ 8. This is one of the most important processes to distribute heat
on the surface of the earth.
_________________ 9. The highly viscous, mechanically weak, and ductile region of
the upper mantle of the earth.
_________________ 10. The crust and upper most solid part of the mantle combined
form the brittle upper layers of Earth's interior.

What I Can Do

Activity 4
On a whole sheet of paper (or may be put on an MS Word file), write an essay not
exceeding 200 words on how humans have altered the atmosphere, biosphere,
hydrosphere, and lithosphere. Write the possible consequence or consequences
these alterations would do to Earth’s system as whole.

Rubrics:
NOT NEEDS MEETS EXCEEDS
EVIDENT IMPROVEMENT EXPECTATION EXPECTATION
(0-74 pt.) (75-80 pts.) (81-90 pts.) (91-100 pts.)
Essay is
relevant to the
assigned topic
and written
logically and
clearly.

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 Assessment
Choose the letter of the best answer. Write the chosen letter on a separate sheet of
paper.

1. Which of the following best describes Earth’s water?

A. It is saltwater
B. It is in the atmosphere
C. It is in rivers and lakes
D. It is in freshwater underground

2. What does “geo” in geosphere mean?

A. Air
B. Land
C. Life
D. Water

3. What does “hydro” in hydrosphere mean?

A. Air
B. Land
C. Life
D. Water

4. Photosynthesis shows interaction between biosphere and what subsystem?

A. Atmosphere
B. Biosphere
C. Geosphere
D. Hydrosphere

5. What is Earth’s largest system?

A. Atmosphere
B. Biosphere
C. Geosphere
D. Hydrosphere

6. What is Earth’s outermost system?

A. Atmosphere
B. Biosphere
C. Geosphere
D. Hydrosphere

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7. Which of the following is true about Earth’s four subsystems?
A. All are not important for life.
B. All are parts of the atmosphere.
C. All are interacting with each other.
D. All are independent from one another.

8. Approximately what percentage of Earth’s water is available for human

use?
A. 1%
B. 3%
C. 50%
D. 100%

9. What do you call the water that falls from the atmosphere to the earth in
solid or liquid form?
A. hale
B. precipitation
C. rain
D. snow

10. Why is fresh water important for life on Earth?

A. the biosphere needs water
B. we need water to grow food
C. without it people will get sick and die
D. all of the above

11. Which of the following defines what geosphere is?

A. Earth’s solid body
B. Frozen water on Earth
C. All liquid water on Earth
D. A 100 km thick layer of gas

12. To what subsystems do all living things belong?

A. Atmosphere
B. Biosphere
C. Geosphere
D. Hydrosphere

13. Where is Earth’s largest fresh water resource found?

A. In the seas
B. In the oceans
C. In the glaciers
D. In the spring (bukal)

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 14. What does the term “atmo” means?
A. Air
B. Land
C. Life
D. Water
15. What the term “bio” means?
A. Air
B. Land
C. Life
D. Water

Additional Activities

Identify to which subsystem the following samples belong. Write the letter of your
answer on a separate sheet of paper.

A. Atmosphere B. Biosphere
C. Hydrosphere D. Lithosphere
_____1. fungi _____6. archaeon _____11. human
_____2. molten rock _____7. well _____12. pond
_____3. clouds _____8. oxygen _____13. carbon dioxide
_____4. swamp _____9. copper _____14. spring
_____5. helium _____10. basalt _____15. volcano

References
(1) Carleton College. (n.d.). Earth System Science. Retrieved from
http://serc.carleton.edu/Earthlabs/climate/index.html
(2) National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. (n.d.). Teaching Activity: The
Hydrologic Cycle. Retrieved from
http://www.esrl.noaa.gov/gmd/outreach/lesson_plans/The%20Hydrologic%20
Cycle.pdf
(3) National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. (n.d.). The Major Earth Spheres.
Retrieved from
http://www.esrl.noaa.gov/gmd/outreach/lesson_plans/Teacher%20Backgroun
d%20Information-%20The%20Major%20Earth%20Spheres.pdf
(4) National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. (n.d.). El Niño, LaNiña, and ENSO.
Retrieved from
http://www.esrl.noaa.gov/gmd/obop/mlo/educationcenter/students/brochures
%20and%20diagrams/noaa%20publications/El%20Nino%20Fact%20Sheet.pdf

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 Development Team of the Module
Writer: Ed-Angelo P. Tan (SEHS)
Editors: Ronald E. Escorpiso (MSHS)
Reynald Alfred A. Recede (MHS)
Russel S. Berador (SEHS)
Maria Carmina R. Martin (MHS)
Emily G. Santos (PSDS)
Reviewer: Jessica S. Mateo (EPS – Science)
Illustrator: Christine Ann G. Faraon (BNHS)
Layout Artist: Ed-Angelo P. Tan (SEHS)
Management Team:
Sheryll T. Gayola
Assistant Schools Division Superintendent
OIC, Office of the Schools Division Superintendent

Elisa O. Cerveza
Chief, Curriculum Implementation Division
OIC, Office of the Assistant Schools Division Superintendent

Jessica S. Mateo
Education Program Supervisor – Science

Ivy Coney A. Gamatero

Education Program Supervisor – Learning Resource Management Section

For inquiries or feedback, please write or call:

Schools Division Office – Marikina City

191 Shoe Ave., Sta. Elena, Marikina City, 1800, Philippines

Telefax: (02) 8682-2472 / 8682-3989

Email Address: sdo.marikina@deped.gov.ph

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DISCIPLINE • GOOD TASTE • EXCELLENCE