earth sci

earth's characteristics

- Solar System was formed approximately 4.5 billion years ago, the sun is surrounded by
planets, moons, asteroids, comets and meteoroids. Earth is the only planet in the solar
system known to have life.
- It is the third planet from the Sun and the fifth largest in the Solar System. Earth has a
radius of 3,959 miles and is an oblate spheroid in shape. The earth rotates on its axis in
24 hours that creates day and night, and orbits the sun once every 365 days.
- The Earth’s tilting on its axis by 23.4 degrees and its revolution around the sun creates
seasons (winter, spring, summer and autumn). Places near the equator like the
Philippines, only has 2 seasons, the rainy season (June to November) and a dry season
(December to May).

trivia
- It actually takes 23 hours, 56 minutes and 4 seconds for the Earth to rotate once
completely on its axis, this is called Sidereal day.
- Every day, the Sun moves compared to the background stars by about 1°, and so, if you
add up that little motion from the Sun that we see because the Earth is orbiting around it,
as well as the rotation on its axis, you get a total of 24 hours. This is called Solar Day.

the particular characteristics of Earth that

makes life possible

Among the other planets in the Solar system, Earth’s surface, atmosphere, water and magnetic
field set it apart from the rest.

Surface
- Earth is the only planet in the Solar System with plate tectonics. The plates are the outer
crust of the Earth that are broken down into pieces, and they make up the 30% of the
Earth’s surface.
- These are floating on top of the magma interior of the Earth. These plates can move
around against each other, they can either collide, move away from each other, or slide
past each other.
- This geological activity is very important in the carbon cycle process. When microscopic
plants die in the ocean, they fall to the bottom of the ocean, buried over time, then are
carried back into the interior of the Earth by volcanoes and recycled. This pulls carbon
out of the atmosphere, which makes sure we do not suffer greenhouse effect.

greenhouse effect
- is the process by which radiation from a planet's atmosphere warms the planet's surface
to a temperature above what it would be without this atmosphere.

carbon cycle
- is the biogeochemical cycle by which carbon is exchanged among the biosphere,
geosphere, hydrosphere, and atmosphere of the Earth.

Atmosphere
- The earth's atmosphere is 78 percent nitrogen, 21 percent oxygen, and traces of other
gas. The atmosphere not only nourishes life on Earth, but it also protects it: It's thick
enough that many meteorites burn up before impact from friction, and its gases—such
as ozone(found in the stratosphere)—block DNA-damaging ultraviolet light from reaching
the surface.
- The earth's atmosphere is made up of five main layers – the Troposphere, the
Stratosphere, the Mesosphere, the Thermosphere, and the Exosphere.

meteorites
 - is a solid piece of debris from an object, such as a comet, asteroid, or meteoroid, that
originates in outer space and survives its passage through the atmosphere to reach the
surface of a planet or moon.

ozone
- is also called trioxygen, is an inorganic molecule with the chemical formula O3.

ultraviolet light
- UV radiation is present in sunlight, and constitutes about 10% of the total
electromagnetic radiation output from the Sun. For humans, suntan and sunburn are
familiar effects of exposure of the skin to UV light, along with an increased risk of skin
cancer.

Water
- Earth is covered with 70% water, and has acquired the nickname “Blue Planet”. Without
water, life on Earth would have never begun. In humans, water dissolves essential
vitamins and nutrients from food and delivers them to cells.
- Our bodies also use water to clean it from toxins, regulate body temperature and
promote normal body functions.
- Water makes up nearly 60% of our bodies and so we cannot go for more than a few
days without it.

Magnetic field
- The Earth is like a great big magnet, with poles at the top and bottom. The magnetic field
it creates reaches up to thousands of kilometers out from the surface of the Earth –
forming a region called the “magnetosphere“.
- Without it, particles from the Sun’s solar wind would hit the Earth directly, exposing the
surface of the planet to significant amounts of radiation.

- Earth’s location, size and movement around the sun contribute to Earth’s habitability.
- The Earth’s surface is made up of Tectonic plates that move around one another. Plates
either collide, pull apart or past slide each other. These movements have asignificant
effect on Earth, to mention, the carbon cycle.
- The atmosphere of Earth is abundant in oxygen. The earth’s atmosphere plays a very
important role in blocking lethal UV light in reaching its surface.
- Water is vital to maintain life. Simple to complex organisms need water to survive.
- The magnetic field of the Earth protects it from direct solar wind that could damage the
Earth due to radiation.