Spheres of the Earth

1. Spheres of the Earth By: Carissa Cae Anderson

2. Lithosphere • Is the shell of a rocky planet • Has lots of minerals • Interacts with the atmosphere and hydrosphere • The upper mantle and the Earth’s crust are connected but they have different chemical composition • If the tectonic plates shift a volcano can erupt

3. Lithosphere • The theory of the continental drift was that the world used to be one continent and it drifted apart.

4. Biosphere • Part of the Earth where plants and animals exist • It extends to the upper areas of the atmosphere • Interacts with matter and energy • Is also called the zone of life on Earth • Eduard Suess defined it as “the place on Earth where life dwells” in 1875 • Reaches to the bottom of the ocean

5. Hydrosphere • Includes all of the Earth’s water • Interacts with all the other spheres in the Earth • Is also called the water sphere • The water cycle is the movement of water through the Earth • The total mass of the hydrosphere is about 0.023% • The hydrolic cycle is the movement of water and energy

6. Atmosphere The mixture of gases has taken over 4.5 billion years to evolve It is the warmest layer Has 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, and 1% of other gases Three functions of the atmosphere are: 1. It protects the earth from harmful rays of sun 2. It controls the temperature 3. It holds important gases

7. Atmosphere Pressure always decreases with height and does it towards the ground The layers of the atmosphere are: troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, and thermosphere