Science

Earths Water

Roles of water:

1. Influencing Weather: water constantly moves from Earths surface to atmosphere, water falls
back to Earth as snow, rain, sleet, hail
2. Shaping Earth’s Surface: Frozen and liquid water shapes Earth’s surface. Over the time water
can completely reshape a landscape, it wears away rock and carries away sediment and soil.
Example: flowing rivers and pounding ocean waves, glaciers.
3. Supporting Life: Every living thing is made up of water, all biological processes use water, clean
water is vital for humans.
4. Supporting Human Activities: People use water for bathing, cleaning, watering, etc. Fresh water
is more used in industries than in homes. More water is used for agriculture than industry.

Water is a polar molecule. H2O, Hydrogen atoms have a positive charge at one end and the oxygen
atom has a negative charge at the other end. Vapor and iced water also have the same formula (H2O)

 Polarity: Anything that has a positive charge at one end and negative charge at the other end.

States of water:

1. Liquid: molecules are together and move in the same direction.

2. Solid: molecules are stick together and don’t move.
3. Gas: molecules are separated and move in different directions.

Polarity affects the properties of water, because waters polarity affects how water molecules interact
with each other.

Properties of polarity:

1. Cohesion: holds molecules of a substance together. Water forms droplets.

2. Adhesion: holds molecules of different substances together. “Wettable”
3. Specific heat: the energy needed to heat a substance by a particular amount. Because of high
specific heat water can absorb more energy than other substances.
4. Solvent: a liquid that dissolves substances. Water as a solvent is essential for living things.

 Water cycle: movement of water between atmosphere, land, oceans or even living things.
 Gravity: natural force that affects water to flow up and down.

Water can change from one state to another as energy is absorbed or released, water absorbs energy
from its surroundings as it melts from solid to liquid, evaporates from liquid to gas, sublimates from
solid to gas, water releases energy into its surrounding as it freezes from liquid to solid, deposits from
gas to solid. It takes a lot of energy for these changes; this energy comes mostly from the sun.
1. Evaporation: liquid to vapor. 90% of atmosphere comes from water vapor. Most of the water vapor
evaporates from Earth’s oceans. Particles go up (oceans and runoff)
a) Transpiration: Release of water vapor into air by plants. 10% of water in atmosphere comes
from this.
b) Sublimation: Solid water changes directly to water vapor, without first becoming liquid water.
This can happen when dry air blows over ice or snow with low pressure and temperature. A
small amount of water in atmosphere comes from this. (Evaporation in ice)
2. Condensation: from gas to liquid, some of water vapor condenses on small particles, as dust,
forming tiny droplets of water. Particles concentrate in clouds.
3. Precipitation: any form of water that falls to Earth from clouds. Rain, snow, hail, sleet. Particles fall
down.

 Runoff: Streams, rivers, and water that flows downhill over land and reach oceans, lakes and
marshlands.
 Infiltration: Water on land that seeps into the ground.
 Groundwater: water that is underground and also flows downhill though soil and rock.
 Ice flow: Earths ice is mostly stored in Antarctica and Greenland, glaciers at high altitudes.
Glaciers cover 10% of Earths surface. Glaciers are called rivers of ice because they also flow
downhill to oceans.
 Ocean Circulation: Both surface currents and deep ocean currents transport big amounts of
water from ocean to ocean.

In the water cycle energy and matter are transported by:

a) Energy: transported through changes of state and by the movement of water from place to
place.
b) Matter: Ocean currents transport large amounts of water, but also transport the solids in the
water or the dissolved salt and gases, such as sand, mud or gravel.

97% of Earths water is salty and 3% is fresh water.

Water is found in:

1. Earths Surface: Water above Earths surface is called surface water. Found in streams, rivers or
lakes
2. Beneath Earths Surface: Water found in spaces between rock particles below Earths surface is
called groundwater. The water table is the upper surface of groundwater.

 Channel: the path that a stream follows.

 Tributary: a small stream that feeds into a river and eventually into a river system.
 Watershed: area of land that is drained by a river system.
 Divide: the separation between watersheds and a ridge or an area of higher ground.
  Stream load: materials carried by a stream.

Groundwater can be stored or it can flow underground.

 Aquifer: body of rock or sediment that stores groundwater and allows it to flow.
 Porosity: the percentage of the rock that is composed of pore space, the greater the pore space,
the higher the porosity is.
 Permeability: measure of how easily water can flow in an aquifer, this means that many pores
are connected so water can flow easily.

Aquifers with both high porosity and permeability are useful as a water resource.

 Recharge: surface water that go down into the ground, occurs in recharge zones.
 Discharge: when groundwater becomes surface water, occurs in discharge zones.

Surface water and groundwater are connected.

Main Uses of Water:

1. For drinking and use at home: surface water is used for drinking too, fresh water is used in many
other ways in home.
2. For Agriculture: 40% of fresh water and 70% of groundwater are used for agriculture.
3. For Industry: 40% of water used in industry helps cool elements in power plants.
4. For Transportation and Recreation: Surface water is used to transport products and people from
place to place. People use rivers, oceans, lakes for recreation.

Oceanography

Five Main Oceans (Oceans are connected):

1. Pacific Ocean (largest)

2. Atlantic Ocean (second largest)
3. Indian Ocean (third largest ocean)
4. Southern Ocean (located near Antarctica)
5. Artic Ocean (smallest ocean, mostly covered by ice)

 Salinity: the measure of the amount of dissolved salts in a liquid, salinity of seawater has
remained steady over time. The salinity of water near ocean is lower than in areas with
freshwater and it can be higher in areas where evaporation is high.
 Density: measure of the mass of a substance divided by its volume. The density of ocean water
depends on temperature and salinity.
 Temperature: Ocean temperature varies by latitude, depth and by season.
 Ocean Trench: A long narrow underwater depression.

3 temperature layers by depth:

  Surface zone: warmest layer, heated by the sun.
 Thermocline: layer in which water temperature drops with increased depth faster that it does in
other layers.
 Deep zone: deepest and coldest layer.

Ocean floor is studied with:

 Sonars: uses sound waves to measure distances. Determine oceans depth.

 Satellites: measure variations in the heigh of the ocean’s surface, measures ocean’s surface
temperature with a high degree of accuracy and seafloor mapping.
 In Underwater Vessels: Use vessels piloted by remote control. Explore the deep and dangerous
ocean’s depth by using ROVs.
 Deep Sea Drilling: Scientists collect cores or long tubes of rock and sediment from the sea floor
and study the layers of rock and sediment in the cores. (Collect materials for industry)

Two main regions of the ocean floor:

1. Continental Margin: the edge of the continent that is covered by the ocean. It is divided in 3, based
on depth and changes in slope: Continental Shelf (flat), Continental Slope (steeply sloping region)
and Continental Rise (gently sloping area)
2. Deep Ocean Basin: begins at the end of the continental margin, extends under the deepest parts of
the ocean, includes narrow depressions and flat, smooth plains.

Features of the ocean floor:

 Mid Ocean Ridge, Diverging Plates: Undersea Mountain chain that forms along the floor of the
ocean. Occur at the boundaries of Earths tectonic plates.
 Abyssal Plains, Very Flat Regions of Earth: The large, flat, almost level area of the deep ocean
basin, covered with layers of fine sediments.
 Ocean Trenches, Subducting Plates: A long, narrow depression in the deep ocean basin, form
where one tectonic plate subducts or move under another plate. Earthquakes are common.
 Seamounts and Volcanic Islands, Where Magma Rises: Seamounts are submerged volcanic
mountains on the ocean floor, they may form at tectonic plate boundaries, or at hot spots. If a
seamount grows above sea level it becomes a volcanic island.

Properties of a wave:

 Wave: any disturbance that transfers energy through matter or empty space.

 Ocean wave: a disturbance that transfers energy through ocean water.

Waves are made up of two main parts:

 Crest: highest point of a wave.

 Trough: lowest point of a wave.

Properties:

 Wavelength: the distance between two adjacent wave crests or wave troughs.
 Amplitude: half the distance between the crest and the trough.
 Frequency: number of waves produced in a given amount of time. Waves/time
 Wave Period: measure of how much time it takes for a wave to pass the fixed point.
Time/waves
 Wave Speed: how fast a wave travels. Distance/time
 Size: crest and trough

Causes of waves:

 Mechanical waves: ocean waves that need to carry energy through matter, such as water.
1. Wind: the more energy is transferred from the wind to the water, the larger the waves become.
2. Earthquakes: underwater earthquakes can cause waves to form.
3. Volcanoes: As underwater volcanoes erupt, the surrounding water is displaced, sending out a wave
in all directions, similar as earthquakes.
4. Landslides: it pushes the surrounding water, energy transfers outwards, lifting the sea surface above
the landslide.
5. Meteorites and Asteroids: If it landed in the ocean, it can displace water and cause huge waves.

Waves don’t move water, they transfer energy through the water, the water itself doesn’t travel with
the energy.

 Tsunami: a series of waves that form when a large volume of ocean water is suddenly moved up
or down. It can be caused by earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, landslides, meteorites or
asteroids. During a tsunami, waves can reach 30m. in heigh. The most destructive natural
disaster.

What happens when a wave reaches shore?

 Energy Decreases with Depth: Changes in the depth of water causes waves to crash. As waves
touch the ocean floor they transfer its energy and the water at the bottom of the wave slows
down.
 It Breaks in Shallow Water: water depth decreases, wave heigh increases. Waves that crash
onto shore are called breakers.
  It Transfers Energy to the Shore: When Ocean waves reach shore, they transfer their energy to
the beach environment.

 Ocean Currents: stream like movements of water in oceans.

 Surface Currents: ocean currents that occur at or near the surface of the ocean, caused by wind.

Surface currents are affected by:

 Continental Deflections: It is when surface currents meet continents, the currents are deflected
and change direction.
 Coriolis Effect: It is the deflection of moving objects from a straight path due to Earth’s rotation.
 Global Winds: Different winds cause currents to flow in different directions. Winds that blow
across the surface of Earth’s Ocean push water across Earth’s surface.

The sun heats air near the equator more than it heats air at other latitudes, the sun causes wind to
form and winds cause surface currents to form. The major source of the energy that powers surface
currents is the sun.

 Deep Currents: the movements of ocean water far below the surface. Caused by differences in
water.

The density of ocean water is affected by salinity and temperature. Water with high salinity is denser
than water with low salinity. Cold water is denser than warm water.

 Convection Current: Is a movement of water that results from density differences. Surface
currents and deep currents form convection currents. They can be vertical, circular, or cyclical.
 Upwelling: Process in which warm surface water is then replaced by cold, nutrient rich water
from the deep ocean, the deep water contains nutrients such as iron and nitrate. Extremely
important process for ocean life to produce phytoplankton and zooplankton. Weather
conditions can interrupt this process.

Ocean currents can also transport dissolved solids, gases and energy around Earth.

 Transport Energy: Ocean circulation is essential in the transportation of energy in form of heat
and it has a great influence on Earth’s climate, convection currents carry about 40% of energy
transported in Earths surface. Near the Equator Ocean absorbs a big amount of solar energy.
 Transport Matter: Ocean currents transport whatever is in the water such as sodium chloride,
table salt, nitrogen, phosphorus, gases, oxygen, argon, carbon dioxide, etc.

Earth’s Atmosphere
  Atmosphere: The mixture of gases that surrounds Earth. Protect us from sun’s damaging rays,
helps to maintain the right temperature range for life on Earth.
 Air pressure: the measure of the force with which air molecules push on an area of a surface. As
altitude increases, air pressure decreases.

Layers in the atmosphere are defined by changes in temperature:

1. Thermosphere: uppermost layer, temperature increases as altitude increases, it is cold, the density
of particles is very low.
2. Mesosphere: Is between the thermosphere and stratosphere, temperature decreases as altitude
increases, meteoroids begin to burn in this layer.
3. Stratosphere: Is between the mesosphere and troposphere, temperature increases as altitude
increases, gases are layered and don’t mix.
4. Troposphere: Lowest layer of the atmosphere, temperature decreases as altitude increases. 80% of
the atmosphere’s total mass, the densest layer.

 Ozone layer: Area in the stratosphere where ozone is highly concentrated. The ozone layer
absorbs most of the solar radiation.
 Greenhouse Effect: the process by which gases in the atmosphere, such as water vapor or
carbon dioxide, absorb and give off infrared radiation. Radiation warms Earths surface, Earths
surface gives off infrared radiation, greenhouse gases absorb some of this infrared radiation and
reradiate it.
With greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, radiation is lost to space more slowly, which makes
Earth’s surface warmer.

 Temperature: a measure of the average kinetic energy of particles. The faster a particle moves,
the more kinetic energy it has.
 Thermal energy: the total kinetic energy of particles. It depends on the number of particles, the
more particles in an object, the greatest the object’s thermal energy.
 Thermal expansion: the increase in volume that results from an increase in temperature.
 Heat: is the energy that is transferred between objects that are at different temperatures.

 When objects that have different temperatures come into contact, energy will be transferred
between them until both objects reach the same temperature.
 The land warms up at a faster rate than water and air do.
 The different rates at which materials become warmer or cooler are due to the property of
specific heat.
 Water warms up more slowly than land does. Water also cools down more slowly than land
does.
  Radiation: The transfer of energy as electromagnetic waves. The sun transfers energy to Earth
by radiation. Radiation transfers energy between objects that aren’t in direct contact with each
other.
 Electromagnetic radiation: Energy from the sun. This energy travels in waves.

 The sun is the major source of energy for processes at Earth’s surface.
 The electromagnetic waves from the sun also provide energy that drives the water cycle.

Energy can be transferred by:

 Convection: is the transfer of energy due to the movement of matter. Convection involves the
movement of matter due to differences in density. Most often occurs in fluids but it can also
happen in solids.
 Convection currents: the cycling of matter. As the air becomes warmer, it becomes less dense.
This air is pushed upward and out of the way by cooler and denser air that is sinking, it cools and
becomes denser as the warm air rises and then it begins to sink back towards Earths surface.
This cycle moves energy through the atmosphere. Convection currents also occur in the oceans
because of differences in density of water. These currents transfer energy from Earths core
toward Earths surface and they also cause the movement of tectonic plates.

 Conduction: is the transfer of energy from one object to another object through direct contact.
The greater the difference in energy of the particles, the faster the transfer of energy by
conduction occurs.

 Energy can be transferred between the geosphere and the atmosphere by conduction.

 Conduction also happens between particles of air and particles of water.