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Introduction to Earth Science

Iceland’s Eyjafjallajokull volcano erupting on April 17, 2010. Ash spread over much of

Europe and disrupted air traffic.

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Earth Science

Encompasses all sciences that seek to

understand:

• Earth

• Earth’s neighbors in space

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Earth Science

Earth Science includes

• Geology – the “study of Earth,” specifically its

surface and interior

• Oceanography – a study of the ocean

• Meteorology – the study of the atmosphere

and the processes that produce weather and

climate

• Astronomy – the study of the universe

visibleearth.nasa.gov

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People and the Environment

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People and the environment

Environment:

• Everything that surrounds and influences an

organism

• Ex. Water, air, soil, rock, other organisms, etc.

• Term “environmental” is usually reserved for

those aspects that focus on the relationships

between people and the natural environment

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People and the environment

Population

• Population of the planet is growing rapidly

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People and the environment

Population

• Population of the planet is growing rapidly

• It took Earth until about year 1800 to reach 1

billion people, and Earth is 4.6 billion years

old!

• How big is the number 4.6 billion?

• If you were to begin counting at the rate of one

number per second, never stopping, it would take

you 150 years to reach 4.6 billion!

• There are now over 7.3 billion people on

Earth (http://www.census.gov).

• All those people need resources to live

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People and the environment

Resources

• Includes water, soil, minerals, and energy

• Rate of mineral and energy usage has

climbed

Bingham Canyon copper

mine, Salt Lake City, UT

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People and the environment

Resources

• Two broad categories:

• Renewable – can be replenished (examples

include plants and energy from water and wind)

• Nonrenewable – cannot be replenished (examples

include metals and fossil fuels like coal and

gasoline)

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People and the environment

Environmental problems

• Local, regional, and global

• Human-induced and accentuated

• Urban air pollution

• Acid rain

• Ozone depletion

• Global warming

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People and the environment

Environmental problems

• Natural hazards

• Earthquakes

• Landslides

• Floods

• Hurricanes

• World population pressures

Top: debris flow in Caraballeda, Venezuela, 1999

Bottom: Hurricane Ike, Crystal Beach, Texas, 2008

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Scientific Inquiry

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Scientific inquiry

Science assumes the natural world is:

• Consistent

• Predictable

Goal of science

• To discover patterns in nature

• To use the patterns to make predictions

• Example: oil exploration

• Discovering how oil forms helps predict where to

find oil deposits

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Scientific inquiry

An idea can become a

• Hypothesis (tentative or untested explanation)

• Theory (tested and confirmed hypothesis. It is

a tested and confirmed explanation that is

accepted by the scientific community)

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Scientific inquiry

Scientific methods/ Methods of Science

• Gather facts through observation

• Formulate working hypotheses (often more

than one!)

• Examples: squeaky door

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Scientific inquiry Scientific knowledge is gained through

• Following steps with insight and creativity

• Collecting facts

• Developing a hypothesis

• Conduct experiments/make observations

• Re-examine the hypothesis and accept, modify, or

reject

• Critique and testing by peers

• Models that withstand examination

• Models used for natural processes over long time

scales, or in remote locations

• Totally unexpected occurrences

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Scientific Inquiry

Theory vs. law

• A theory does not “turn into” a law!

• Theory: an explanation of a natural event

• Law: a description of a natural event

• Example: color

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Earth’s Spheres

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The Four Spheres of the Earth

Hydrosphere

Biosphere

Atmosphere

Geosphere

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The Four Spheres

1. Hydrosphere

2. Atmosphere

3. Biosphere

4. Geosphere

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The Four Spheres

1. Hydrosphere

2. Atmosphere

3. Biosphere

4. Geosphere

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Hydrosphere: all the water on Earth

solid

liquid

gas

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Earth’s “Spheres”

Hydrosphere

• The hydrosphere includes all the water on

earth (water vapor, rivers, lakes, oceans,

glaciers, groundwater, etc.)

• The ocean is the most prominent feature of

the hydrosphere

• Ocean covers about 71% of Earth’s surface

• Ocean contains about 97% of Earth’s water

• Only about 3% of Earth’s water is freshwater

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Hydrosphere

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Functions of the hydrosphere

Furnish water for life

Act as a geological transport agent (rain,

streams, glaciers, etc. erode sediment).

Act as a thermostat to moderate our

climate

• Keeps Earth from getting too hot or too cold

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The Four Spheres

1. Hydrosphere

2. Atmosphere

3. Biosphere

4. Geosphere

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Atmosphere: the gases

surrounding a planet

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Functions of the atmosphere

Sustains life

Transfers moisture

Insulation

Weathers the crustal rocks to make soils

Protects against radiation from the sun

Protects against objects from space

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Atmosphere

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Atmosphere

Meteorology is the study of the

atmosphere

Composed of:

• Nitrogen 78%

• Oxygen 21%

• Argon 0.9%

• Other gases (CO2, H2Ov, etc.) 0.1%

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The Four Spheres

1. Hydrosphere

2. Atmosphere

3. Biosphere

4. Geosphere

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Biosphere: all the life on Earth

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Biosphere: all the life on Earth

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Biosphere

This includes all life on Earth

• Concentrated near the surface in a zone that

extends from the ocean floor upward for a few

kilometers into the atmosphere

Carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen

in the hydrosphere first formed life ~ 3.5

billion years ago.

• This first life evolved from nonliving matter

Diverse environmental conditions over the

globe enabled life to evolve and diversify

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The Four Spheres

1. Hydrosphere

2. Atmosphere

3. Biosphere

4. Geosphere

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Geosphere

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Geosphere

The solid Earth

Extends from the surface to the center of

the planet.

Includes the crust, mantle, and core.

Surface features represent the outward

expressions of the dynamic behavior of

Earth’s interior.

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Earth’s layered structure

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Each sphere is linked…

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Earth System Science

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Earth system science

System – any group of interacting parts

that form a complex whole

• Example: city’s transportation system

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Earth system science

Earth is a dynamic body with many

separate but highly interacting parts or

spheres

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Review Questions