What are

How are they interconnected?

 The early Earth is very different from what Earth is today. The early earth
had an atmosphere that was very inhospitable. There were frequent impacts
from asteroids and meteorites, as well as much frequent volcanic eruptions.
The temperature was still very high causing hydrogen and helium to escape
into outer space. The early earth has lots of water vapor but no oxygen.
Later frequent volcanic eruptions produced water and gases such as
carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen, hydrogen, ammonia and
methane, but there was still no oxygen.
As earth cooled, water condensed to form oceans. Carbon dioxide
dissolved into oceans forming carbonates and nitrogen became the major
component of the atmosphere.
Two major processes changed Earth’s atmosphere. First the radiation from
the sun caused water to split into hydrogen and oxygen. Hydrogen escaped
into the outer space and oxygen is accumulated in the atmosphere. Second,
a type of organism called cyanobacteria evolved and began carrying out
photosynthesis wherein it utilized carbon dioxide and energy to produce
sugar and oxygen. The oxygen released during photosynthesis became the
main source of Oxygen on Earth.
LAYERS OF ATMOSPHERE
1. Troposphere- lowest layer
- average height is about 12
km from the surface
- temperature decreases as
altitude increases bec.
atmosphere becomes
thinner and absorbs less
solar radiation.
Temperature decreases at
the tropopause, found at the
top of the troposphere.
The lowest part of
troposphere is the warmest
LAYERS OF ATMOSPHERE
2. Stratosphere – second layer from the
surface
- temperature increases as
altitude increases bec. of
the presence of ozone
layer.
- layer where jet planes flies
- free of clouds and other
forms of weather
- temperature stops
increasing at the
stratopause
LAYERS OF ATMOSPHERE
3. Mesosphere
- temperature decreases as
altitude increases. The coldest region is the
upper mesosphere
- layer that protects the earth
from meteoroids. Most meteoroids that enters
the atmosphere burned up due to the intense
friction of the air and the meteoroids and
these are seen on earth as the shooting stars.
Meteoroids that manage to reach the earth
are called meteorites
- temperature stops
decreasing at the mesopause.
LAYERS OF ATMOSPHERE
4. Thermosphere – temperature increases as
altitude increases. Nitrogen and Oxygen gases
absorb a great deal of ultraviolet radiation and
turns it into heat. Temperature rises up to
1500 degrees Celcius
- The portion of the
atmosphere between 80 and 550 km above
the earth is called ionosphere where it is
consist of highly ionized gas that is formed
when ultraviolet rays knock off electron from
nitrogen and oxygen. At the poles, the ions
interact with air molecules to form an aurora,
a colourful display of lights
• LAYERS OF ATMOSPHERE
5. Exosphere – outermost
layer of the earth.
- about 700 km
to 1000 km above sea level
- most of the
orbiting satellites, as well as
low density elements like
hydrogen and helium are
found here.
Water is the basic element of nature. It
covers 70% of the earth’s surface. It
provides life, eases out heat, drains
harmful substances and mediates many
day to day works. Water need to be
replenished, purified and circulated again
and again so that it can perform its
functions. Nature does this job through the
process called water cycle or hydrologic
cycle, wherein it is a phenomenon where
water moves through the three
phases(solid, liquid and gas) over the 4
spheres and completes a full cycle.
STAGES OF WATER CYCLE
• Step 1. Evaporation
• The water cycle starts with
evaporation. It is the process
where water at the surface turns
into water vapors. Water absorbs
heat energy from the sun and turns
into vapors. Water bodies like the
oceans, the seas, the lakes and the
river bodies are the main source of
evaporation. Through evaporation
water moves from the hydrosphere
to atmosphere.
 STAGES OF WATER CYCLE
• Step 2: Condensation
• As water vaporizes into water
vapor, it rises up in the
atmosphere. At high altitudes
the water changes into very tiny
particles of ice/ water droplets
because the temperature at high
altitude is low. This process is
called condensation. These
particles come close together
and form clouds and fogs in the
sky.
STAGES OF WATER CYCLE
Step 3 Sublimation

Sublmation is a process where ice

directly converts into water
vapors without converting into
liquid water. This phenomenon
accelerates when the temperature
is low or pressure is high. The
main sources of water from
sublimation are the ice sheets of
the North Pole and the South Pole
and the ice caps on the
mountains. Sublimation is a
rather slower process than
evaporation.
 STAGES OF WATER CYCLE
• Step 4: Precipitation
• The clouds (condensed water vapors) then pour
down as precipitation due to wind or temperature
change. This occurs because the water droplets
combine to make bigger droplets. Also when the air
cannot hold any more water, it precipitates. At high
altitudes the temperature is low and hence the
droplets lose their heat energy. These water
droplets fall down as rain. If the temperature is very
low (below 0 degrees), the water droplets fall as
snow. Water also precipices in the form of drizzle,
sleet and hail. Hence water enters lithosphere.
STAGES OF WATER CYCLE
• Step 5: Runoff
• As the water pours down (in whatever
form), it leads to runoff. Runoff is the
process where water runs over the
surface of earth. When the snow melts
into water it also leads to runoff. As water
runs over the ground it displaces the top
soil with it and moves the minerals along
with the stream. This runoff combines to
form channels and then rivers and ends
up into lakes, seas and oceans. Here the
water enters hydrosphere.
STAGES OF WATER CYCLE
• Step 6: Transpiration
• As water precipitates, some of it is absorbed
by the soil. This water enters into the
process of transpiration. Transpiration is a
process similar to evaporation where liquid
water is turned into water vapor by the
plants. The roots of the plants absorb the
water and push it toward leaves where it is
used for photosynthesis. The extra water is
moved out of leaves through stomata (very
tiny openings on leaves) as water vapor.
Thus water enters the biosphere and exits
into gaseous phase
STAGES OF WATER CYCLE
• Step 7: Infiltration
• Some of the water that precipitates
does not runoff into the rivers and is
absorbed by the plants or gets
evaporated. It moves deep into the
soil. This is called infiltration. The
water seeps down and increases the
level of ground water table. It is
called pure water and is drinkable.
The infiltration is measured as inches
of water-soaked by the soil per hour.
EFFECTS OF WATER CYCLE
• 1. It regulates the temperature of the surroundings.
• 2. It changes weather and creates rain
• 3. It helps in conversion of rocks to soil.
• 4. It circulates important minerals through the spheres.
• 5. It creates many geographical features present on earth like the ice
caps of mountain, iceberg, the river and valleys lakes and more.
 The Four Layers
The Earth is composed of
four different layers.
Many geologists believe that
as the Earth cooled the
heavier, denser materials
sank to the center and the
lighter materials rose to the
top. Because of this, the crust
is made of the lightest
materials (rock- basalts and
granites) and the core
consists of heavy metals
Layers of the EARTH (nickel and iron).
The Crust
It is very thin in comparison to the other three layers. The crust is only about 3-5 miles
(8 kilometers) thick under the oceans(oceanic crust) and about 25 miles (32 kilometers)
thick under the continents (continental crust). The temperatures of the crust vary from air
temperature on top to about 1600 degrees Fahrenheit (870 degrees Celcius) in the deepest
parts of the crust

The crust of the Earth is broken into many pieces

called plates. The plates "float" on the soft, plastic
 mantle which is located below the crust. These
plates usually move along smoothly but sometimes
they stick and build up pressure. The pressure builds
and the rock bends until it snaps. When this occurs
an Earthquake is the result!

The crust is composed of two basic
rock types granite and basalt. The
continental crust is composed mostly
of granite. The oceanic crust consists
of a volcanic lava rock called basalt.
Basaltic rocks of the ocean plates are much
denser and heavier than the granitic rock of
the continental plates. Because of this the
continents ride on the denser oceanic plates.
The crust and the upper layer of the mantle
together make up a zone of rigid, brittle rock
called the Lithosphere. The layer below the
rigid lithosphere is a zone of asphalt-like
consistancy called the Asthenosphere. The
asthenosphere is the part of the mantle that
flows and moves the plates of the Earth.
 The Mantle
The mantle is the layer located directly under
the sima. It is the largest layer of the Earth,
1800 miles thick. The mantle is composed of
very hot, dense rock. This layer of rock even
flows like asphalt under a heavy weight. This
flow is due to great temperature differences
from the bottom to the top of the mantle. The
movement of the mantle is the reason that
the plates of the Earth move! The temperature
of the mantle varies from 1600 degrees
Fahrenheit at the top to about 4000 degrees
Fahrenheit near the bottom!
The mantle is made of much denser, thicker
material, because of this, the plates "float"
on it like oil floats on water.
• The mantle is made of much denser, thicker material, because of this
the plates "float" on it like oil floats on water.

Many geologists believe that the

mantle "flows" because of convection
currents.Convection currents are
caused by the very hot material at the
deepest part of the mantle rising, then
cooling, sinking again and then
heating, rising and repeating the cycle
over and over.

When the convection currents flow in the mantle they also move the crust.
The crust gets a free ride with these currents. A conveyor belt in a factory
moves boxes like the convection currents in the mantle moves the plates of
the Earth.
Outer Core
The core of the Earth is like a ball of very hot metals. (4000
degrees F. to 9000 degrees F.)
The outer core is so hot that the metals in it are all in the liquid
state.
The outer core is located about 1800 milesbeneath the crust
and is about 1400 miles thick.
The outer core is composed of the melted metals nickel and
iron.
 
Inner Core
The inner core of the Earth has temperatures and pressures so
great that the metals are squeezed
together and are not able to move about like a liquid, but are
forced to vibrate in place as a solid.
The inner core begins about 4000 miles beneath the crust and
is about 800 miles thick.
The temperatures may reach 9000 dgrees F. and the pressures
are 45,000,000 pounds per square inch.
How do these spheres interact??
Describe the interaction in this scene tracing the
movement of material or energy through all four of
Earth’s sphere.
FLOW OF ENERGY AND MATTER IN AN
ECOSYSTEM
• Nitrogen Fixation
• Nitrogen fixation is the process by which gaseous nitrogen (N2) is converted to ammonia (NH3
or NH4+) via biological fixation or nitrate (NO3-) through high-energy physical processes. N2 is
extremely stable and a great deal of energy is required to break the bonds that join the two N
atoms. N2 can be converted directly into NO3- through processes that exert a tremendous
amount of heat, pressure, and energy. Such processes include combustion, volcanic action,
lightning discharges, and industrial means. However, a greater amount of biologically available
nitrogen is naturally generated via the biological conversion of N2 to NH3/ NH4+. A small group
of bacteria and cyanobacteria are capable using the enzyme nitrogenase to break the bonds
among the molecular nitrogen and combine it with hydrogen.
• Nitrogenase only functions in the absence of oxygen. The exclusion of oxygen is accomplished
by many means. Some bacteria live beneath layers of oxygen-excluding slime on the roots of
certain plants. The most important soil dwelling bacteria, Rhizobium, live in oxygen-free zones
in nodules on the roots of legumes and some other woody plants. Aquatic
filamentous cyanobacteria utilize oxygen-excluding cells called heterocysts.
• Nitrification
• Nitrification is a two-step process in which NH3/ NH4+ is converted to NO3-. First, the soil
bacteria Nitrosomonasand Nitrococcus convert NH3 to NO2-, and then another soil
bacterium, Nitrobacter, oxidizes NO2- to NO3-. These bacteria gain energy through these
conversions, both of which require oxygen to occur.
• Assimilation
• Assimilation is the process by which plants and animals incorporate the NO3- and
ammonia formed through nitrogen fixation and nitrification. Plants take up these forms of
nitrogen through their roots, and incorporate them into plant proteins and nucleic acids.
Animals are then able to utilize nitrogen from the plant tissues.
• Ammmonification
• Assimilation produces large quantities of organic nitrogen, including proteins, amino acids,
and nucleic acids. Ammonification is the conversion of organic nitrogen into ammonia. The
ammonia produced by this process is excreted into the environment and is then available
for either nitrification or assimilation.
• Denitrification
• Denitrification is the reduction of NO3- to gaseous N2 by anaerobic bacteria. This process
only occurs where there is little to no oxygen, such as deep in the soil near the water table.
Hence, areas such as wetlands provide a valuable place for reducing excess nitrogen levels
via denitrification processes.
Explain the process of
Photosynthesis and
Respiration
INTERACTION OF ONE SPHERE TO
ANOTHER
Create a story board showing interaction of the 4 spheres in
different phenomena. Provide the story with cause and effect
interactions.
1 Building Dams
2
• 1. Humans build dam out of
rock materials
• 2. Water from the dam
evaporates into the air
• 3. Water from the lake seeps
into the cliff walls becoming
3 ground water.
• 4. Humans harness energy
from the water by having a
4 5 spin turbine coming from
metal ores in the ground.
• 5. The turbines supply
electricity to the homes.