EARTH SCIENCE

MODULE 1
THE EARTH SYSTEM

Prepared by:
KAREN KEY A. OCON, RN

Name:

Year/Course:

Contact Number:

Module for Earth Science, KAREN KEY A. OCON | | 1

 NEW BRIGHTON SCHOOL OF THE PHILIPPINES, INC.

Module No. 1
Subject: Date of Submission: ____________
Name of Student: __________________________________________________
Course and Year: __________________________________________________
Semester and School Year: __________________________________________

What is this module about?

Earth Science is the study of the Earth and its neighbors in space. It is an exciting science with many interesting and
practical applications.
Today we live in a time when the Earth and its inhabitants face many challenges. Our climate is changing, and that
change is being caused by human activity. These are just a few of the problems where solutions depend upon a deep
understanding of Earth science.
In this module, you will be able to demonstrate an understanding of the
a. formation of the universe;
b. the subsystems (geosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, and biosphere) that make up the Earth;
c. the three main categories of rocks; and
d. the origin and environment of formation of common minerals and rocks

What Will You Learn from This Module?

At the end of the lesson, you will be able to:

1. describe the characteristics of Earth that are necessary to support life;
2. explain that the Earth consists of four subsystems, across whose boundaries matter and energy flow;
3. identify common rock-forming minerals using their physical and chemical properties;
4. classify rocks into igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic;
5. identify the minerals important to society; and
6. describe how ore minerals are found, mined, and processed for human use.

THE CHARACTERISTICS OF EARTH THAT SUPPORTS LIFE

PLANET EARTH

Earth, our home, is the third planet from the sun. It's the only planet known to have an atmosphere containing free
oxygen, oceans of water on its surface and, of course, life.
Earth is the fifth largest of the planets in the solar system. It's smaller than the four gas giants — Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus
and Neptune — but larger than the three other rocky planets, Mercury, Mars and Venus.

Task 1: Oral Recitation

Characteristics of Earth that supports life

1. Cite some factors that make the planet Earth habitable?

2. But what makes Earth different from other planets? What properties does it possess to make life possible on this
planet?
3. As a student, how can you contribute to prevent further damage to our ozone layer?

LESSON 1: CHARACTERISTICS OF EARTH THAT SUPPORTS LIFE

Figure 1: Planets in the Solar System

1. Our Location is far from any hazards

The solar system sits far from the galactic core (almost 30,000 light-years), between two major spiral arms. More so,
the solar system's circular orbit helps it avoid that dangerous part of the galaxy. The galactic core likely contains a
massive black hole and releases consistent bursts of radiation. Also, there are relatively few stars near the sun,
reducing risks to Earth from gravitational tugs, gamma-ray bursts, or collapsing stars called supernovae.

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 2. Atmosphere
 Earth and Venus are the right size to hold a sufficient atmosphere. Earth’s atmosphere is about 100 miles
thick. It keeps the surface warm and protects it from radiation and small- to medium- sized meteorites.
 While oxygen is necessary for most life on Earth, the majority of Earth’s atmosphere is not oxygen. Earth’s
atmosphere is composed of about 78 percent nitrogen, 21 percent oxygen, 0.9 percent argon, and 0.1
percent other gases. Trace amounts of carbon dioxide, methane, water vapor, and neon are some of the
other gases that make up the remaining 0.1 percent.
3. Energy
 Living things use light or chemical energy to run essential life processes. With the availability of sufficient
energy, organisms can perform different metabolic reactions through the cells. The inner planets such as
Earth get too much sunlight for life. The outer planets get too little.

4. Nutrients used to build and maintain an organism’s body.

 Earth has a water cycle, an atmosphere, and volcanoes to circulate nutrients. Venus, Titan, Io, and Mars
have nutrients and ways to circulate them to organisms.

5. We have an ozone layer to block harmful ray.

 Ozone (O3) is a gas in the atmosphere that protects everything living on the Earth from harmful ultraviolet
(UV) rays from the sun. Without the layer of ozone in the atmosphere, it would be very difficult for anything
to survive on the surface. Plants cannot live and grow in heavy ultraviolet radiation, nor can the plankton
that serve as food for most of the ocean life. The ozone layer acts as a shield to absorb the UV rays, and
keep them from doing damage at the Earth's surface.
 The mixture of gases found in the atmosphere, without man's pollution, is perfect for life. Nitrogen accounts
for 78% of the atmosphere, oxygen 21% and argon 0.9%. Greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide, nitrous
oxides, and methane are trace gases that account for about a tenth of one percent of the atmosphere.
These gases trap the sun’s heat to keep the planet warm. If it were much different, life would cease to exist
on Earth. If our atmosphere were thinner, many of the millions of meteors which now are burned up would
reach the Earth's surface, causing death, destruction and fires everywhere.

LESSON 2: THE EARTH SUBSYSTEM

I. BIOSPHERE
 It includes all life forms on Earth.
 It covers all ecosystems – from the soil to the rainforest, from mangroves to coral reefs, and from the plankton-rich
ocean surface to the deep sea.

Ecosystem
 An ecosystem is a geographic area where plants, animals, and other organisms, as well as weather and
landscape, work together to form a bubble of life.

Photosynthesis
 The process by which green plants and certain other organisms transform light energy into chemical energy.
 During photosynthesis in green plants, light energy is captured and used to convert water, carbon dioxide, and
minerals into oxygen and energy-rich organic compounds.

Cellular Respiration
 The process through which cells convert sugars into energy.

II. HYDROSPHERE
Hydrologic Cycle
 The water cycle is a way that water moves all around the Earth. It never stops and doesn't really have a beginning
or an end. It's like a big circle.
 Water that resides in the ocean or in a lake. Some water on the surface of the ocean will evaporate due to heat
from the sun. When it evaporates it turns into vapor water and goes up into the atmosphere. This vapor water gets
together with a lot of other vapor water and turns into clouds. Clouds move about the earth with the weather and
once they are so full of water they drop the water to Earth in some form of precipitation. It could be rain, snow,
sleet, or hail. When the water hits the earth it may fall right back into the ocean or feed a flower or be snow on the
top of a mountain. Eventually this water will evaporate and start the whole cycle again.

Figure 3: Water Cycle

III. ATMOSPHERE
 The earth is surrounded by a layer of gases.
 The atmosphere is very important to life on Earth and does many things to help protect life and help life to
survive.

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A BIG BLANKET
The atmosphere protects Earth like a big blanket of insulation. It absorbs the heat from the Sun and keeps the heat
inside the atmosphere helping the Earth to stay warm, called the Greenhouse Effect.
It also keeps the overall temperature of the Earth fairly steady, especially between night and day. So we don't get
too cold at night and too hot during the day. There is also a portion of the atmosphere called the ozone layer. The ozone
layer helps to protect the earth from the Sun's radiation.
This big blanket also helps to form our weather patterns and climate. The weather keeps too much hot air from
forming in one place and causes storms and rainfall.

AIR
The atmosphere is the air that plants and animals breathe to survive. The atmosphere is made up of mostly nitrogen
(78%) and oxygen (21%).

LAYERS OF EARTH’S ATMOSPHERE

The Earth's atmosphere is divided up into 5 major layers:
 Exosphere - The last layer and the thinnest. It goes all the way to 10,000 km above the Earth's surface.
 Thermosphere - The thermosphere is next and the air is very thin here. Temperatures can get extremely hot in the
thermosphere.
 Mesosphere - The mesosphere covers the next 50 miles beyond the stratosphere. This is where most meteors burn up
upon entry. The coldest place on Earth is at the top of the mesosphere.
 Stratosphere - The stratosphere extends for the next 32 miles after the troposphere. Unlike the troposphere the
stratosphere gets its heat by the Ozone Layer absorbing radiation from the sun. As a result, it gets warmer the further
away you get from the Earth. Weather balloons go as high as the stratosphere.
 Troposphere - The troposphere is the layer next to the ground or surface of the Earth. It covers around 30,000-50,000
feet high. This is where we live and even where planes fly. Around 80% of the mass of the atmosphere is in the
troposphere. The troposphere is heated by the surface of the Earth.

Figure 4: Layers of Atmosphere

IV. GEOSPHERE
 The geosphere is the earth's solid rock or rigid outer layer known as the crust.
 Included in the earth's geosphere are the rocks, minerals, molten rock, sand, and mountains.
 Within the earth's geosphere are sedimentary, igneous, and metamorphic rocks, which are in a constant
state of recycling.

LAYER RELATIVE POSITION

CRUST  Outermost layer
 Thinnest under the
ocean
 Thickest under
continents
 Lithosphere; crust
and top of mantle
MANTLE  Middle layer
 Thickest layer
 Athenosphere –
top portion
CORE  Inner layer
 Consist of two
parts: outer core
and inner core

Interactions in Earth’s Spheres

Although the four systems have their unique identities, they are closely connected. For example, many birds (biosphere) fly
through the air (atmosphere), while water (hydrosphere) flows through the soil (geosphere). These close connections cause
changes to take place in Earths spheres. These changes are called events. This two-way relationship between event and
sphere is called interactions.
Below are some examples of events and the interactions that happen.
 Volcano. Volcanoes in the geosphere may cause profound direct and indirect effects on the hydrosphere,
atmosphere and biosphere. This happens when volcanoes (geosphere) emit large amount of particulate matter

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 into the air (atmosphere). These particles serve as nuclei for the formation of water droplets (hydrosphere). Rainfall
(hydrosphere) often increases often increases following an eruption, stimulating plat growth (biosphere).
 Acid Rain. Acid rain is any form of liquid precipitation (hydrosphere) that contains high level of nitric and sulfuric
acid. Rain (hydrosphere) brings these acids to the Earth, acidifying soil (geosphere) lakes and rivers (hydrosphere).
Acidic water leaches nutrients from the soil (geosphere) into the water table (hydrosphere, making the soil less
fertile for the plants (biosphere) and the subterranean water (hydrosphere) not potable for humans (biosphere).
 Forest Fire. Forest fire (an event in biosphere) may destroy all the plants (biosphere) in the area. This could lead to
increase in erosion (geosphere). Increased amount of soil entering the streams (hydrosphere) can lead to increased
turbidity or muddiness of the water which will affect that plants and animals (biosphere) that live in it.
Other examples of events are typhoon, photosynthesis, El Nińo, ozone change and many others.

SUMMARY

Earth is the only planet in the solar system where life of plants, animals, and even microorganisms is possible. These
salient features of Earth include distance from the sun, right atmospheric conditions, availability of liquid water and
even water vapor and solid ice, influence of the moon, continuous flow of energy and nutrients in the system, strong
magnetic field and a fitting greenhouse effect to warm the planet.

There are four main subsystems of the Earth. The atmosphere is an envelope of gases protecting the surface of the
planet from ultraviolet radiation from the sun. The hydrosphere comprised all the bodies of water such as ocean, sea,
rivers, lakes and glaciers. The geosphere is the solid portion of earth which is consists also of the lithosphere where the
crust, mantle and core are found. The biosphere is consisting of all life forms. These systems interact and are
interconnected in sustaining life in varied forms.

REFERENCES

 https://scied.ucar.edu/carbon-cycle
 https://www.ducksters.com/science/composition_of_the_earth.php
 https://www.softschools.com/science/
 https://www.britannica.com/science/geosphere
 https://www.britannica.com/science/plate-tectonics
 https://eschooltoday.com/learn/the-geosphere/
 https://www.google.com/search?q=earth+system+as+a+closed+system&hl=en&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ve
d=2ahUKEwjItpPX-czpAhXGPXAKHQ94BPsQ_AUoAXoECA8QAw&biw=1366&bih=608#imgrc=mLnHbZocYtOmGM
 file:///C:/Users/computer/Downloads/The%20Earth%20System.pdf
 https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/hydrosphere/
 https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/atmosphere/
 https://www.esrl.noaa.gov/gmd/education/info_activities/pdfs/TBI_earth_spheres.pdf
 https://www.researchgate.net/publication/263466153_The_Earth_System
 https://www.nationalgeographic.org/article/earths-systems/
 https://eschooltoday.com/learn/what-is-earth-systems-thinking/

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