Earth Science

Earth’s Subsystem Study Guide

Erlison Lorenz M. Ognilla

What is a System?

A set of interconnected components that • •

are interacting to form a unified whole.
Atmospheric Pressure and Altitude
The Earth system is essentially a closed • The higher the Altitude the lower the
system. It receives energy from the sun pressure
and returns some of this energy to space.
Hydrosphere

• About 70% of the Earth is covered

with liquid water

• much of it is in the form of ocean

water
•
• Only 3% of Earth's water is fresh: •
Atmosphere
two-thirds are in the form of ice, and
• thin gaseous layer that envelops the
lithosphere. • the remaining one-third is present in
• One of the most important streams, lakes, and groundwater
processes by which the heat on the • What did you realize after knowing
Earth's surface is redistributed is the percentage of distribution of
through atmospheric circulation. water on Earth?
• Current state = weather • The oceans are important sinks for
• Volume of Clean and Dry Air CO2 through direct exchange with the
atmosphere and indirectly through the
weathering of rocks.

• Heat is absorbed and redistributed

on the surface of the Earth through
ocean circulation.
Geosphere
• What happens to the temperature as
• includes the rocks of the crust and
we go beyond the atmosphere?
mantle, the metallic liquid outer core,
and the solid metallic inner core.
• Plate Tectonics is an important again and they all run back into the
process shaping the surface of the ocean for the cycle to continue. A
Earth. complete water cycle takes time. Other
spheres are impacted in many ways
• The primary driving mechanism is the during the water cycle.
Earth's internal heat, such as that in
mantle convection. Think of the many ways that the
hydrosphere and the atmosphere
Biosphere connect. Evaporation from the
hydrosphere provides the medium for
• all life forms on Earth.
cloud and rain formation in the
• all ecosystems atmosphere. The atmosphere brings
back rainwater to the hydrosphere.
• the base of the food chain
In what way do the geosphere and
comprises photosynthetic organisms. hydrosphere connect? Water provides
the moisture and medium for weathering
During photosynthesis, CO2is
sequestered from the atmosphere, and erosion of rocks in the geosphere.
while oxygen is released as a The geosphere, in turn, provides the
platform for ice melts and water bodies
byproduct.
to flow back into the oceans.
is a CO2 sink, and therefore, an
important part of the carbon cycle. The atmosphere provides the
geosphere with heat and energy
Sunlight is necessary for life. needed for rock breakdown and
erosion. The geosphere, in turn, reflects
the sun’s energy back into the
Things to ponder… atmosphere.

• Do the four subsystems work The biosphere receives gasses, heat,

independently or interdependently? and sunlight (energy) from the
atmosphere. It receives water from
The Water Cycle the hydrosphere and a living medium
from the geosphere.
The oceans and water bodies absorb
the sun’s energy and warm
up. Transpiration by trees and
Evaporation of surface water occurs. The Earth is a dynamic planet.
The water vapor in the atmosphere Geological and biological processes
condenses (condensation) to form rain cause energy and the elements
clouds and comes down as rain necessary for life-carbon, hydrogen,
(precipitation). The rains fall back on nitrogen, oxygen, sulfur, and
land and into water bodies (run-off) phosphorus- to circulate through global
 “reservoirs.” These reservoirs are the
biosphere (the living portion of our
planet), the atmosphere, the ocean, and
the solid Earth. It is only because of this
cycling that life can thrive. The cycling of
elements determines the environment,
for example by regulating the
composition, and thus the temperature,
of the atmosphere.

• Reading Assignment

• Read about the following:

• Water Cycle, Carbon Cycle and

Nitrogen Cycle

• Take note of the processes involved on

each cycle and their meaning

• Highlight the involvement of the four

subsystems in those processes of each
cycle.

• Guide Questions
• How does each subsystem affect or
interact with one another?

• What are the natural processes that show

these interactions between two of the four
subsystems?