Chapter 3Section 1

The Earth as a System

The earth is an integrated system that consists of rock, air, water, and living things that all interact with each other.

Scientists have divided this system into four parts, the geosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere.

Geosphere The solid part of the

Earth that consists of all rock, and the soils and sediments on Earth’s surface is the geosphere.

Most of the geosphere is located in Earth’s interior.

The atmosphere is the mixture of gases that makes up the air we breathe.

Nearly all of these gases are found in the first 30 km above the Earth’s surface.

Nitrogen 78.084%

Oxygen 20.946%

Argon 0.934%

Carbon dioxide 0.038%

Water vapor Less than 1%

Other 0.002%

Atmosphere

Hydrosphere

The hydrosphere makes up all of the water on or near the Earth’s surface.

Much of this water is in the oceans, which cover nearly ¾ of the Earth.

Biosphere The biosphere is made up of parts of

the geosphere, atmosphere and the hydrosphere.

The biosphere is the part of the Earth where life exists.

The Composition of the Earth

Scientists divide the Earth into three layers; the crust, mantle, and the core.

The crust is Earth’s thin outer layer and makes up less than 1% of the planet’s mass.

The mantle is the layer beneath the crust and makes up 64% of the Earth’s mass.

The core is the innermost layer and is composed of the densest elements.

The Structure of the Earth Earth’s outer layer is the lithosphere,

which is a cool, rigid layer that is 15 km to 300 km thick.

It includes the crust and uppermost part of the mantle. It is divided into huge pieces called tectonic plates.

Asthenosphere The asthenosphere is the layer beneath

the lithosphere.

The asthenosphere is a plastic, solid layer of the mantle made of rock that flows very slowly and allow tectonic plates to move on top of it.

Plate Tectonics Tectonic plates glide across the

asthenosphere in much the same way as a chunk of ice drifts across a pond.

Continents that are on tectonic plates move along with them.

The major tectonic plates include the Pacific, North American, South American, African, Eurasian, and Antarctic plates.

Plate Boundaries Plates may separate from one another,

collide with one another, or slip past one another.

Enormous force is generated at tectonic plate boundaries , where the crust is pulled apart, is squeezed together, or is constantly slipping.

The forces produced at the boundaries of tectonic plates can cause mountains to form, earthquakes to shake the crust, and volcanoes to erupt.

Earthquakes A fault is a break in the

Earth’s crust along which blocks of the crust slide relative to one another.

When rocks that are under stress suddenly break along a fault, a series of ground vibrations is set off. These vibrations of the Earth’s crust caused by slippage along a fault are known as earthquakes.

Where earthquakes have struck

The Richter Scale The Richter scale is used by scientists to measure

the magnitude, or the amount of energy released by an earthquake.

The smallest magnitude that can be felt is approximately 2.0, and the largest magnitude ever recorded is 9.5. Earthquakes can cause severe damage after 7.0.

Each increase of magnitude by a whole number indicates the release of 31.7 times more energy than the whole number below it.

Volcanoes A volcano is a

mountain built from magma that rises from the Earth’s interior to the surface.

Volcanoes are often located near tectonic plate boundaries.

Global Effects of Volcanic Eruption

Major volcanic eruptions can change the Earth’s climate for several years.

In large eruptions, clouds of volcanic ash and sulfur-rich gases may reach the upper atmosphere.

As soon as the ash and gases spread across the planet, they can reduce the amount of sunlight that reaches Earth’s surface.

Erosion The removal and transport

of surface material is called erosion.

Wind erosion blows the soil away, which is where the plant’s roots are located.

Water erosion is caused by both rivers and oceans. Waves from ocean storms can erode coastlines, and over time, rivers can carve deep gorges into the landscape.