chapter 1: earth as a system...the things geologists look at are volcanoes, earthquakes, maps,...
TRANSCRIPT
Chapter 1: Earth as a System
Science is:
Any system of knowledge which
tries to observe, identify, understand
and describe the nature of the
Universe in whole or part.
Science explains and predicts
the interactions and
dynamics of complex Earth
systems.
Science involves unbiased
observations and study, and
systematic experimentation
(Scientific Method) carried on in
order to determine the nature of
what is being studied.
Science enables you to understand your
world.
Every time you try to find out how and
why things look and act the way they do,
YOU ARE ACTING LIKE A SCIENTIST!
Why Study Earth Science??
Earthquakes
Tornadoes
Tornado path
Mining Minerals
Oil Exploration
Why Study Earth Science?
1.Resources, Economics
2.Hazards
3.Human sustainability
4.Engineering
5.Military
6.Pure Science and Understanding
The objective of Earth Science is to
understand the history of the Earth and
how it will behave in the future, to find and
manage the Earth’s natural resources on
which our civilization depends…
And, finally, simply to
understand the nature of our own
back yard.
Earth Science Disciplines
Geology
Oceanography
Hydrology
Astronomy
Meteorology
Geology is the study of Earth, its matter, and the
processes that form and change Earth. Some of
the things Geologists look at are volcanoes,
earthquakes, maps, fossils, mountains, and land
uses.
Meteorology is the study of weather and
the forces and processes that cause it.
Meteorologists study storm patterns,
climates, and what factors causes our daily
weather.
Astronomy is the study of objects in space, including
stars, planets, and comets. Astronomers study space
objects and seek evidence about the beginning and
future of the universe.
Oceanography is the study of Earth’s
oceans. Oceanographers study the processes
that occur within oceans and the effects
humans have on these processes.
Hydrology is the study of the Earth’s fresh
water, and its interaction with the land, as part
of the water cycle. Hydrologists help provide
information needed to find adequate supplies
of fresh water. They also study floods and
water pollution.
Physics Biology
Chemistry
Astronomy Oceanography
Meteorology Hydrology
The Earth Sciences
Geology
Chapter 1.1 Earth Systems Science
Advances in technology have allowed
scientists to study the Earth in a
variety of different ways.
Submersible
Seismometer
Satellite
Satellites and space craft allow us
to view, photograph and map
Earth from Space.
Submersibles and ships allow
us to view, photograph and
map the ocean floor.
ROV’S
Buoys and other monitoring
devices provide us with data
related to events such as tsunamis
and earthquakes.
Powerful computer programs called GIS
(Geographic Information Systems) help
scientists organize, layer, query and
interpret huge amounts of collected data in
order to study how the Earth changes over
time.
Layering of Elevation and Vegetation Data
What data do you
think this image
displays?
The information collected from this
technology has provided scientists with
an understanding that the Earth’s
spheres are strongly connected and
interactive, and that the Earth is more
than a collection of separate parts.
This new method of studying the Earth
is called: Earth Systems Science.
Earth Systems Science
Using data from modern technology,
scientists can create complex
representations of how the Earth
“works”. These representations of
Earth processes are called models.
Tsunami Modeling Program
Tsunami Model
A System is defined as: A part of the
Universe that can be studied separately.
What is a System?
The
Solar System
Example: Respiratory System
System models can be used to study what
happened in the past, what is currently
happening, and what might happen in the
future.
Galactic Collision
Earth Science is the study of our planet’s
interacting systems, its place within the
solar system, and the universe beyond
the earth.
• Closed Systems – energy can be
exchanged, but matter can not (it
doesn’t enter or leave the system).
• Open Systems – energy and matter
are freely exchanged between the
system and its surroundings.
Closed Systems - ________ can enter,
but ________ doesn’t enter or leave.
ENERGY
MATTER
•http://thefutureofartificialintelligence.blogspot.com/2008/11/ai-132-artificial-intelligence-agents.html
•http://swervechurch.files.wordpress.com/2009/04/snow_globe.jpg
Can energy in the form of light enter?
Can energy in the form of heat enter?
Can my soda (matter) come out?
Can the buildings (matter) leave the snowglobe?
Open Systems - __________________
are freely exchanged between the system
and its surroundings.
ENERGY and MATTER
http://www.displayit-info.com/food/images/drinks/2120.JPG
Energy and matter are able to be
exchanged in this system.
Soda and ice (matter) can be put
back into glass, or can spill out of
glass into the environment.
Main Pass Energy Hub
Initial design had open-loop system
(sucked up seawater to cool the
operating units).
Earth Systems Science studies the
flow of matter and energy in and
out of the Earth’s open systems,
or Spheres.
Chapter 1.2
The Earth’s Four Spheres
Geosphere
Matter and energy move back and forth
between the different Earth Spheres, and the
different spheres interact every day, all
around you.
Can you think of some examples of how
this is so?
Geosphere and _______?
Atmosphere and ______?
Geosphere and _______?
_________ and _______?
Interactions among the Spheres
Volcanoes (___________) erupt,
sending ash and gases into the
air (____________), and sending
lava and ash down on surrounding
forests (____________) and human
habitations (____________).
Interactions among the Spheres
Hurricanes (____________)
Sweep across the ocean
(____________), and onto the
Land (____________), damaging
The dwellings of people
(____________) who live along
The coast.
Interactions among the Earth’s
spheres change the spheres to
differing degrees.
These impacts can be single events,
temporary changes, or ongoing change.
Single event example: meteorite impact
that causes massive global extinction)
Ongoing change, steady process
(example: Erosion)
Section 1.3: Cycles and the Earth
Focus Question: What are Cycles, and how do they work?
Key Vocabulary:
Cycle Carbon Cycle
Evapotranspiration Tectonic Cycle
Geothermal Energy Rock Cycle
Solar Energy Water Cycle
Tidal Energy Energy Cycle
Albedo
Cycles and the Earth
A Cycle is a series of steps that repeats.
Some cycles (water cycle) repeat over
relatively short periods of time, while
others repeat over millions of years.
On Earth, the water cycle, energy cycle,
carbon cycle, tectonic cycle and rock cycle
“work” together to maintain a dynamic
planet.
The Water Cycle
What is Happening?
Carbon Cycle
• Carbon is the building block of life.
• On Earth it is present in all organic
materials and in materials that are derived
from once living things (such as coal and
oil)
Carbon Cycle
• Carbon is found in:
– The atmosphere (mostly as CO2)
– Living things: Trees and plants
(they breath in carbon from the
atmosphere) and animals (like
humans – we exhale carbon)
– Oceans
– Sediments
– Fossil Fuels
The Carbon Cycle
The Rock Cycle• The rock cycle describes the dynamic
transition, over geologic time, between the three
main rock types: Sedimentary, Metamorphic
and Igneous.
• Rocks are changed or destroyed when they are
forced out of equilibrium conditions, due to the
driving forces of plate tectonics and the water
cycle that expose rocks to new environments.
•Through these processes each rock type can
become transformed into another rock type.
The Rock Cycle
Tectonic Cycle
•The Earth’s geologic history is one of continents rifting
and diverging, forming new ocean basins, followed by
motion reversal and convergence back together, plate
collision and mountain-building (formation and
destruction of supercontinents and ocean basins).
• The plate tectonic cycle is driven by earth’s internal
heat and results in the slow but continuous recycling of
material through the mantle and back up into the crust.
• This cycle of opening and closing oceanic basins, and
rifting and converging continents is called a “Wilson
Cycle”.
Tectonic Cycle
Tectonic Cycle
• The Tectonic Cycle rebuilds the land
and prevents the Earth’s surface from
being weathered and eroded to sea-level
or below.
• The Tectonic Cycle brings minerals that
are vital to human civilization to the
Earth’s surface.
Energy Cycle
• The water and carbon cycles are like wheels
with water and carbon continually moving
back and forth between the spheres.
• The energy cycle is more like a scale.
• The amount of energy that enters the system
should equal the amount of energy that is
removed.
• Earth’s energy cycle is also called the “energy
budget”.
Energy Cycle
• There are 3 main sources of energy
for the Earth’s energy budget:
– Solar Energy (~ 99%)
–Geothermal Energy (~ 0.01%)
–Tidal Energy (~0.002%)
Energy Cycle –
Solar Energy
• Solar Energy –
comes from nuclear
fusion reactions in
the sun.
– Drives the winds,
ocean currents,
and waves
Energy Cycle –
Geothermal Energy
• Geothermal Energy
– originates in the
Earth from the decay
of radioactive
materials.
– Drives the
movement of the
continents, powers
volcanoes, geysers,
and earthquakes.
Energy Cycle –
Tidal Energy
• Tidal Energy – a
result of the pull of
the moon on the
Earth’s oceans
– Slows down
Earth’s rotation
and causes the
oceans to bulge.
Energy Cycle
• To maintain the balance of the energy
cycle/budget the incoming energy must go
somewhere.
• About 40% is reflected back into space
without being changed.
• The remaining energy is used within the
Earth’s systems.
• As energy moves through the Earth’s system,
it is changed. With every change a little bit of
energy is lost to the cycle.
Is Earth an Open or Closed System??
• http://www.all-creatures.org/hope/img/earth-light.jpg