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Lecture Outlines

PowerPoint

Chapter 1

Earth Science 11e

Tarbuck/Lutgens

Earth Science, 11e

Introduction to

Earth Science

Chapter 1

Earth Science

Encompasses all sciences that seek to

understand

• Earth

• Earth's neighbors in space

Earth Science includes

• Geology - literally the “study of Earth”

• Oceanography – a study of the ocean

Earth Science

Earth Science includes

• Meteorology - the study of the atmosphere and

the processes that produce weather

• Astronomy - the study of the universe

People and the environment

Environment

• Surrounds and influences organisms

• Physical environment encompasses water, air,

soil, and rock

• Term “environmental” is usually reserved for

those aspects that focus on the relationships

between people and the natural environment

People and the environment

Resources

• An important focus of the Earth sciences

• Includes water, soil, minerals, and energy

• Two broad categories

• Renewable – can be replenished (examples include

plants and energy from water and wind)

• Nonrenewable – metals (examples include metals

and fuels)

People and the environment

Population

• Population of the planet is growing rapidly

• Rate of mineral and energy usage has climbed

more rapidly than the overall growth of

population

Environmental problems

• Local, regional, and global

People and the environment

Environmental problems

• Human-induced and accentuated

• Urban air pollution

• Acid rain

• Ozone depletion

• Global warming

• Natural hazards

• Earthquakes

• Landslides

People and the environment

Environmental problems

• Natural hazards continued

• Floods

• Hurricanes

• World population pressures

Scientific inquiry

Science assumes the natural world is

• Consistent

• Predictable

Goal of science

• To discover patterns in nature

• To use the knowledge to predict

Scientific inquiry

An idea can become a

• Hypothesis (tentative or untested explanation)

• Theory (tested and confirmed hypothesis)

• Paradigm (a theory that explains a large number

of interrelated aspects of the natural world)

Scientific method

• Gather facts through observation

• Formulate hypotheses and theories

Scientific inquiry

Scientific knowledge is gained through

• Following systematic steps

• Collecting facts

• Developing a hypothesis

• Conduct experiments

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

reject

• Theories that withstand examination

• Totally unexpected occurrences

Early evolution of Earth

Origin of Earth

• Most researchers believe that Earth and the

other planets formed at essentially the same

time

• Nebular hypothesis

• Solar system evolved from an enormous rotating

cloud called the solar nebula

• Nebula was composed mostly of hydrogen and

helium

Early evolution of Earth

Origin of Earth

• Nebular hypothesis continued

• About 5 billion years ago the nebula began to contract

• Assumes a flat, disk shape with the protosun (pre-Sun) at the center

• Inner planets begin to form from metallic and rocky clumps

• Larger outer planets began forming from fragments with a high percentage of ices

The Nebular hypothesis

Figure 1.7

Early evolution of Earth

Formation of Earth’s layered structure

• As Earth formed, the decay of radioactive elements and heat from high-velocity impacts caused the temperature to increase

• Iron and nickel began to melt and sink toward the center

• Lighter rocky components floated outward, toward the surface

• Gaseous material escaped from Earth’s interior to produce the primitive atmosphere

Earth's “Spheres"

Hydrosphere

• Ocean – the most prominent feature of the

hydrosphere

• Nearly 71% of Earth's surface

• About 97% of Earth's water

• Also includes fresh water found in streams,

lakes, and glaciers, as well as that found

underground

Earth's “Spheres"

Atmosphere

• Thin, tenuous blanket of air

• One half lies below 5.6 kilometers (3.5 miles)

Biosphere

• Includes all life

• Concentrated near the surface in a zone that

extends from the ocean floor upward for several

kilometers into the atmosphere

Earth's “Spheres"

Solid Earth

• Based on compositional differences, it consists

of the crust, mantle, and core

• Divisions of the outer portion are based on how

materials behave

• Lithosphere - rigid outer layer

• Divisions of Earth’s surface - continents and ocean

basins

Earth’s layered structure

Earth system science

Earth is a dynamic body with many separate

but highly interacting parts or spheres

Earth system science studies Earth as a

system composed of numerous parts, or

subsystems

System - any size group of interacting parts

that form a complex whole

Earth system science

System

• Closed systems are self-contained (e.g. an

automobile cooling system)

• Open systems - both energy and matter flow

into and out of the system (e.g. a river system)

Earth system science

Feedback mechanisms

• Negative-feedback mechanisms resist change

and stabilize the system

• Positive-feedback mechanisms enhance the

system

Earth as a system

• Consists of a nearly endless array of

subsystems (e.g. hydrologic cycle, rock cycle)

Earth system cycles

Figure 1.17

Earth system science

Earth as a system

• Sources of energy

• Sun – drives external processes such as weather,

ocean circulation and erosional processes

• Earth’s interior – drives internal processes including

volcanoes, earthquakes and mountain building

• Humans are part of the Earth system

End of Chapter 1