1.

The geosphere

PLANET EARTH

PP1. Write a definition for each of the four componentes of the Earth on
the next slide.
• GEOSPHERE: • ATMOSPHERE:

• HYDROSPHERE: • BIOSPHERE:
 1. The geosphere
Our planet has a layer of gases
surrounding it (the atmosphere).
About 75% of its surface is covered
by water or ice (the hydrosphere).
Both on land and in aquatic
environments, many different living
things thrive: forests, animals,
microorganisms… (they make up
the biosphere).

What are we left with if we

remove all those things from our
planet?
THE GEOSPHERE
This is the aspect the surface of our planet would have… A solid,
rocky Surface, with an irregular relief.
The geosphere is the mostly solid part of the
Earth which lies below the rocky surface.
Radius of the Earth: 6,371 km

https://www.dkfindout.com/us/earth/structure-earth/shape-earth/
The geosphere’s relief:
The study of continental relieves has been more or less easy, but for the ocean floor,
things have been much more difficult. These are some typical units of continental and
oceanic relief.

PP2. Translate the names of

relief units into Spanish.
The internal structure of the geosphere: The deepest borehole humans have drilled into
the geosphere reached 12,262 m. Volcanoes expel materials which come from about 11-
15 km deep. This means we have no direct access to the inside of our planet. To study it,
we need to interpret indirect information.

PP3. How do scientists obtain information about the deep areas of the geosphere?
When an earthquake occurs,
somewhere below the surface, the
vibrations (waves) travel in all directions
through the geosphere, reaching other
points of the planet. Studying the
characteristics of these waves as they
arrive at different points we can deduce
the properties of the materials they
have propagated through.
This is what we know about the internal structure of the geosphere…
0-10 km
35 km (av), but up Mohorovicic Continental
Oceanic Oceanic
to 70 km discontinuity lithosphere
Continental crust crust lithosphere

75 – 100 km asthenosphere

350 km
mantle
mesosphere

Gutenberg
2,900 km discontinuity
Outer Outer
core core
Lehman
5,150 km
discontinuity
Inner
Inner
core
core

6371 m

According to their composition According to their mechanical properties

PP4. Complete the following chart:

Discontinuity Layer above Layer below Depth

Mohorovicic
Gutenberg
Lehman

PP5. Complete the information about the following layers of the geosphere:

Layer Physical state Mechanical Main

behaviour component
Continental
crust
Oceanic crust
Mantle
Outer core
Inner core
PP6. Compare the following pairs of concepts: a) Litosphere and crust; b) Litosphere
and asthenosphere; c) Outer and inner core; d) Continental and oceanic crust.

Litosphere = RIGID, BRITTLE
Asthenosphere = PARTIALLY MOLTEN, SEMI-FLUID
PP7. What are tectonic plates made up of?
PP8. Identify the tectonic plate where these locations are found. Use te map in the next
slide.
a) Hawái; b) New York; c) Siberia
The rigid lithosphere is broken up
into «tectonic plates» which can
drift with the flow of the
asthenosphere below, moving the
continents with them, and creating
mountain ranges and trenches.
PP 9. Find the name of the tectonic plates in this map:

PP10. Compare the map of

tectonic plates and the map of
volcanoes, earthquakes and
mountains. Can you see any link?

PP11. Finally, mark

the main mountain
ranges in the world.
What pattern can
you see?
 2. What are minerals and how are
they classified?
The Earth’s crust, as well as the mantle, are made up of rocks. Rocks are a
mixture of various minerals.

Ex. Granite is the most abundant rock in the continental crust. It is made up of
three minerals: feldspar, mica and quartz.
Mica (biotite mica) Quartz

Feldspars PP12. Can you investigate the mineral

composition of the following rocks?
A) Limestone; B) Diorite.
Minerals are naturally occurring, inorganic, solid substances. They have a definite
chemical composition and specific physical properties.

The atoms in a mineral are arranged in a highly ordered way in internal crystalline
structures.

Ex. Quartz is one of the minerals that make up

granite. Its components are atoms of silicon and
oxygen in a fixed proportion, and arranged in an
ordered network.

Sometimes, the external shape of the mineral

reflects its internal structure. Then, we call it a
crystal.
PP13. Decide if the following words refer to minerals or not. If they are not minerals,
say why: carbon dioxide, pyrite, granite, styrofoam, amber, steel, copper, basalt,
mercury, quartz, bone.

PP14. Explain this sentence: Minerals have a definite chemical composition.

The most abundant chemical elements in the Earth’s crust, those which form part of most
minerals, are: oxygen (O), silicon (Si), aluminium (Al), iron (Fe), Calcium (Ca), sodium (Na),
potassium (K) and magnesium (Mg).

The most frequent among these are oxygen and silicon; their combination with other
elements produces the minerals called silicates, which are the most abundant minerals on
Earth. The rest of the minerals are called non-silicates.
 QUARTZ: Depending on the impurities it has, there are many
different types with different colors. Impurities are small
SILICATES: amounts of other substances which are not part of the
mineral.

Rose quartz Rock crystal

Milk quartz

Agate Jasper Amethyste

SILICATES: FELDSPARS: Opaque, white to pink. Very common.
 MICA MINERALS: Mica minerals have a perfect cleavage
SILICATES: that allows them to be broken into very thin sheets,
which can be folded easily.
Muscovite is clear and silvery, whereas biotite is black.
 SILICATES:

Olivine crystals

OLIVINE: It is a common mineral in the

Earth's subsurface but weathers quickly on Olivine basalt
the surface.
 NATIVE METALS:
NON-SILICATES:

Gold

Platinum

Silver Copper
NON-SILICATES:

NATIVE SULPHUR has a

distinctive yellow
colour.

Diamonds and graphite are both made up of pure carbon.

They have the same composition, but their internal
crystalline structure is different. This makes their properties
different too. Diamond is the hardest mineral in nature. It is
used in jewellery, but also as an abrasive or in drilling or
grinding procedures. Graphite is soft and it is used to make
the lead used in pencils, and as a very effective lubricant and
conductor of heat and electricity.
NON-SILICATES:
HEMATITE OR OLIGISTE is an oxide. It is colored
black to steel or silver-gray, brown to reddish brown,
or red. It is mined as the main ore of iron. There are
different forms, but they all have a red streak.
NON-SILICATES:
Galena is a sulphide. It is the most
important lead ore mineral. It looks silvery.

Halite is commonly known as rock salt, it is

the mineral form of NaCl. It is typically
colorless or white, but may also be light blue,
pink, etc. depending on the amount and
type of impurities. It forms as a result of the
drying up of enclosed lakes and seas.
NON-SILICATES:

Calcite is transparent to opaque. It will

dissolve with most forms of acid, so a
way to identify it, is to pour a bit of
chlorhydric acid on it to see if bubbles
appear. Acidic rainwater also dissolves
it. Later, it forms deposits such as
stalactites and stalagmites.
PP15. What are impurities? What effects do they cause on a mineral?

PP16. What are the most abundant elements in the Earth’s crust? What are their
symbols and names? (Spanish and English).

PP17. What’s the difference between silicates and non-silicates? Write down at least
10 minerals of each type.

PP18. Compare the following minerals. Use the information you know and talk about
their mineral properties too.
a) Diamond and graphite
b) Agate and rock crystal
c) Native gold and galena

PP19. Match each term with its composition:

a) Oxide 1. Metal + chlorine /fluorine
b) Sulphide 2. Oxygen + silicon + other elements
c) Carbonate 3. Sulphur + metal
d) Silicate 4. Oxygen + another elements
e) Halide 5. Carbon + oxygen + metal
 3. What are the properties of
minerals?
They are useful to identify most minerals:

1. COLOUR: Some minerals are always the same colour (sulphur - yellow, cinnabar –
red); others, show varieties of colour depending on the type of impurities they have,
such as quartz or halite.
2. EXTERNAL SHAPE: Sometimes, the external shape of a piece of mineral reflects the
internal arrangement of atoms. Then, the shape helps us identify the mineral. Most
often minerals don’t show their typical shape.

Massive quartz
Quartz crystals

Halite (salt) crystals Massive halite

3. LUSTRE: It refers to how a mineral looks when it reflects light. It can be metallic,
vitreous (like glass), pearly, dull (no luster), greasy …
4. STREAK: It is the colour of the mineral when it is made into powder. If the mineral is
soft enough to be scratched with a fingernail, we can examine its streak easily. Another
way to see it is to rub the mineral on an unglazed porcelain plate.

Graphite (grey streak) and oligiste (red streak)

5. Cleavage and fracture refer to how minerals break. Cleavage is the tendency of a
mineral to break along smooth, flat, surfaces. Fracture is the tendency to break along
irregular surfaces, whose shape is also characteristic.

Mica cleaves in thin flat sheets.

Quartz shows a smoothly
curved fracture, called
conchoidal

Some minerals have a splintery fracture

in fibrous or acicular minerals
6. Hardness: It refers to the comparative ease or difficulty with which a mineral can be
scratched. If it can be scratched with a fingernail, its hardness is low. If it cannot be
scrached with a fingernail but with a nail its hardness is medium. If the mineral can
scratch glass its hardness is high.

Hardness can be measured using the Mohs scale. It consists of 10 minerals ordered
according to their hardness from 1 to 10. We can assess the hardness of a mineral by
trying to scratch it with the minerals in the Mohs scale.

PP20. What number on the Mohs Scale of Hardness would these minerals have? A)
A mineral that can be scratched by talc; B) A mineral that can scratch talc, and can
be scratched by gypsum; C) A mineral that can scratch quartz, and can be scratched
by topaz.
7. Others: Such as taste, scent, transparency, magnetism, density etc.
PP21. What type of luster do these minerals have?

c
a b

PP22. Name a mineral which is / has:

1.Red streak
2.Black streak
3.Good cleavage
4.Conchoidal fracture
5.Metallic luster
d e 6.Dull
7.Opaque
8.Transparent
9.Soft
10.Hard
 4. What are rocks and how are they
classified?
What are rocks?
Any naturally occurring, solid mass of mineral
matter (exceptions: oil /petroleum is an organic
liquid).

When rocks is made up of one mineral, they are

called MONOMINERALIC.

Is granite monomineralic? Granite is not a

monomineralic rock because it is made up of quartz,
feldspars and mica.
 How are rocks classified?
PP23. Listen to the teacher’s explanation about rocks, and complete this
activity in your notes:
– Name each type of rock.
– For each type, explain how it is formed.
– For each type, give at least one example.

PP24. What are the differences between minerals and rocks?

PP25. Research the mineral composition of the following rocks. Are they
monomineralic? Granite; Basalt; diorite; limestone; gypsum; rock salt;
quartzite, sandstone.
 How are rocks classified?
There are 3 types of rocks:

a) Igneous or magmatic rocks: They are formed from cooled

magma. Granite, basalt, pumice and obsidian are igneous
rocks.
b) Sedimentary rocks: They are formed by the accumulation
and consolidation of sediment (clay, sand or small rocky
fragments). Conglomerate, sandstone, clay, limestone and
gypsum are examples of sedimentary rocks.
c) Metamorphic rocks: They are formed from other rocks by the
effects of heat and pressure. Slate and marble are
metamorphic rocks.
 A) Igneous Rocks
• They are formed from cooled magma.
• Two types: plutonic and volcanic.
• Plutonic (intrusive) rocks form as magma cools slowly
underground.
– Because it cools slowly, the minerals form very large crystals (you can
see them).
– Example: granite
• Volcanic (extrusive) rocks form as lava cools quickly above ground.
– Because it cools quickly, minerals form very small crystals or no
crystals at all (you can’t see them).
– Sometimes, they have bubble holes.
– Examples: basalt, pumice, obsidian.
PLUTONIC ROCKS HAVE LARGE CRYSTALS

This is granite
 IN VOLCANIC ROCKS YOU CANNOT SEE CRYSTALS

This is basalt

This is obsidian

This is pumice

PP26. Explain the difference between volcanic rocks and plutonic rocks.
 B) Sedimentary Rocks
• They are formed by the accumulation and consolidation
of sediment.
• The formation process has two stages: the accumulation
of sediment (SEDIMENTATION) and the consolidation of it
to form a sedimentary rock (LITHIFICATION).
– In sedimentation: Through weathering, any rock on
the earth’s surface is transformed into loose sediment.
Later, erosion removes the sediment, which is
transported and deposited somewhere in a
sedimentary basin.
– Through lithification, loose sediment is compacted
and cemented together and turns into a sedimentary
rock.
1. Sedimentation: The accumulation of sediments in
layers involves the following processes:
→ Weathering: rocks at the surface are broken down into small pieces called
sediments by the action of atmospheric phenomena, or by the activity of
plants and animals.

→ Erosion: these sediments are removed from the weathering site by running
water, glaciers, wind or waves.

→ Transportation: sediments are carried away to another place.

→ Deposition: sediments are eventually deposited into thick layers

 2. Lithification: Once sediments are deposited, they must join
to form a rock. This takes place by two processes:
→ Compaction: The weight of new layers of sediment compacts the
sediments at the bottom. The pressure reduces the spaces between the
fragments and squeezes out the water and the air between them.

→ Cementation: As the water is eliminated, dissolved minerals form small

crystals. As a result, the rock fragments are stuck together.

Weight of overlying layers of sediment.

Small crystals form,
acting as a glue or
cement.

Water and air are

squeezed out through
compaction
• There are 3 types of sedimentary rocks:
A) Detrital: made up of fragments of other rocks that are stuck
together by compaction and cementation. Ex. Conglomerate,
sandstone, clay.
B) Chemical: made up of minerals which were all formerly
dissolved in water. Ex. Limestone, gypsum, rock salt.
C) Organic: made up organic (!!) sediment from plant and animal
remains. Ex. Coal and oil.

• Sedimentary rocks can contain fossils, which

are remains of living things that accumulate
together with sediments and become part of
the rocks during the process of lithification.
DETRITAL AND CHEMICAL SEDIMENTARY ROCKS:

Conglomerate: Big fragments Sandstone: Made up of sand- Clay: it looks like hardened
and cement minerals. sized particles. Cement is not mud. It is soft.
visible. It is hard.

Limestone: It contains calcium Gypsum: It is soft, with white

carbonate (CaCO3). It’s streak. Transparent or
normally light coloured. translucent white. Rock salt: It tastes salty.
PP27. Order the following sedimentary rocks according to the size of the sediment they are
made of: sandstone, limestone, clay, conglomerate.
 C) Metamorphic Rocks
• They are formed from any other rocks by the effects
of heat and pressure.
• The formation process of a metamorphic rock is
called METAMORPHISM.
• It is a slow process which occurs deep in the Earth
where pressure and temperature are high.
• Metamorphism never causes the rocks to melt.
• As a result of metamorphism crystals in the parent
rock can grow bigger, fuse together, change their
arrangement or even new minerals may be formed.
 LIMESTONE (sedimentary rock – you can’t see the crystals)

MARBLE (metamorphic rock – visible

crystals)
Marble is formed from limestone. An
increase in pressure an temperature
causes calcite crystals in limestone to
grow in size. As a result, the crystals fuse
together forming marble.
 CLAY (sedimentary rock - no layers)

SLATE (metamorphic rock - foliation)

Slate is formed from clay. An increase in

pressure an temperature causes clay
minerals to orientate into flat planes. As
a result, slate shows foliation, and breaks
up easily into flat layers.

PP28. Classify the following rocks into their corresponding category: pumice, basalt,
marble, schist, granite, sandstone, oil, obsidian, slate.
When metamorphism occurs as a consequence of compression forces (ex. at a
convergent boundary, under thick layers of other rocks, etc.), minerals orientate to form
flat thin layers or even bands of different colours. This is called FOLIATION. There are
several types of foliation:

Other metamorphic rocks are non-foliated:

PP28. Classify the following rocks into
their corresponding category: pumice,
basalt, marble, schist, granite,
marble quartzite
sandstone, oil, obsidian, slate.
 5. What is the rock cycle?
•Rocks change slowly over time due to different
processes that take place on and under the Earth’s
surface.

•In fact, rocks change from one type to another, again

and again in a cycle, called the ROCK CYCLE.

PP29. Think and answer these questions in your

notebook:
→ How can an igneous rock become a sedimentary rock?
→ How can a sedimentary rock become a metamorphic rock?
→ How can a metamorphic rock become an igneous rock?
The ROCK CYCLE includes all processes by which rocks change
slowly over time from one type to another.
 6. The resources of the geosphere.
•The geosphere provides us with minerals and rocks, which are
very useful to humans. Minerals and rocks are considered as
important NATURAL RESOURCES.

•We extract minerals from the geosphere through MINING. There

are SURFACE MINES and UNDERGROUND MINES.

•Minerals and rocks are used in everyday life in many different

ways: at home, at school, in construction, to make jewellery, etc.

VOLUNTARY PROJECT: Choose a mineral or a rock that you like,

and make a poster about it: What are its main characteristics and
properties? Where can you find it? How is it extracted? What are
its main uses?