Earth’s Structure &

Composition

Prepared by:
HYACINTH RAE ARANAS - LIPAT
 THE SYSTEMS OF THE EARTH
When changes in earth’s system have finally settled, it was
presumed that the systems evolved into FOUR SUBSYSTEMS
that interact to carry out many different natural processes
- Geosphere
- Hydrosphere
- Atmosphere
- Biosphere
 The interaction of matter and energy was
restricted within and, hence, Earth would have
its own system involving the interplay of
physical, chemical, biological processes which
are all made possible because of the
composition and nature of its subsystems.
This concept was actually proposed by the
GAIA HYPOTHESIS.
 GAIA
Hypothesis
This hypothesis states that the organisms
interact with their inorganic surroundings and
create a self-regulating, complex system that
helps maintain the conditions necessary for
life on the planet.
 GEOSPHERE
-the solid -includes the interior - all the continents
structure, rocks and and the ocean floor
portion of minerals, landforms, are also
the Earth down to deep depths considered part of
of the core and the the geosphere
processes that shape
Earth’s Surface

Scientists that study this part of the Earth are

called GEOLOGISTS .
The term GEOPSHERE
covers all the SOLID PARTS
of Earth both on its surface up
to the deeper depths of the
core, as opposed to the
“lithosphere” which covers
only Earth’s crustal part and
upper mantle.
 Geosphere’s Internal Structure and
Surface Features
 The Earth has three main layers: the
crust, mantle and core.
 The different layers change in density,
mineral composition and thickness with
depth.
 Modern technology has allowed the
identification of materials in the interior of
Earth through SEISMIC WAVES.
There are two types of waves traveling through Earth.
- the p-waves which travel fast through solids and liquids
- the s-waves which slowly travel only through solids

Seismologists and volcanologists study the components of Earth through seismic

waves.
 CRUST
o The crust consists of a 5 to 70 – km thick layer
of oceanic and continental crust overlaying
another thick layer of rocks and metals.
o The continental crust is thicker than the oceanic
crust.
o Most of the crust is composed of elements that
include oxygen, silicon, aluminum, iron, calcium,
sodium, potassium, and magnesium.
o These are the same elements we know now as
inorganic materials that we process to produce
things we commonly use today, such as glass,
concrete and steel.
 Just above the upper mantle and still part
of the crust is the Mohorovičić
discontinuity.
 This boundary was discovered by Croatian
seismologist Andria Mohorovičić (1857 –
1936)I in 1909 while studying the seismic
waves in an earthquake in Croatia.
 The velocity if the seismic waves behaved
differently as they traveled through the
layer before the mantle ( which is why it
was termed as “discontinuity).
 The Mohorovičić discontinuity or MOHO
is now recognized as the transitional
boundary that divides the crust and mantle.
 MANTLE
o It is made of solid rock.
o It is also considered the largest part of
Earth, and makes up 84% of Earth’s total
volume.
o It lies between the extremely hot core
and the thin outer layer, the crust.
o At the upper part of the mantle directly
below the crust is the
ASTHENOSPHERE.
o The extreme temperature and pressure
in the asthenosphere causes the rocks to
become ductile and thus move like liquid.
o The asthenosphere radiates heat from
the mantle toward the surface.
o The flow of the molten rocks forces some
brittle parts of the crust to break ,
causing faults to form.
o Some rigid parts of the crust, on the
other hand , just “float” or move about
slowly on this liquid like layer, supporting
the movement of plates as described in
the plate tectonics theory.
Tectonic plates
 large slabs of rock that divide Earth’s crust, move
constantly to reshape the Earth’s landscape
 the system of ideas behind plate tectonics theory
suggests that Earth's outer shell (lithosphere) is
divided into several plates that glide over the
Earth’s rocky inner layer above the soft core
(mantle).
 Plate tectonics has become the unifying theory of
geology. It explains the earth’s surface movement,
current and past, which has created the tallest
mountain ranges and the deepest oceans.
The Earth is always on the
move due to the motion of
the tectonic plates. Seven of
the major plates make up
most of the seven continents
and the Pacific Ocean. They
are named after nearby
landmasses, oceans, or
regions.
The World Atlas names
seven major plates:
African, Antarctic, Eurasian, The Ring of Fire is in the Pacific Ocean. It is made up of a string
of volcanoes, deep ocean trenches, and high mountain ranges. It is
Indo-Australian, North the site of earthquakes around the edges of the Pacific Ocean.
American, Pacific and South
American. The tectonic plates map of the Earth shows where mountain
building, volcanoes, and earthquakes have occurred.
 WHAT IS A TECTONIC
PLATE BOUNDARY?
A tectonic plate boundary
is the border between two
plates. The tectonic plates
slowly and constantly
move but in many different
directions. Some are
moving toward each other,
some are moving apart,
and some are grinding
past each other.
At subduction zones, a convergent
boundary occurs when two tectonic
plates push together. When an ocean
plate and a continental plate collide,
the ocean plate slides under the
continental plate, and bends
downward.

A divergent margin occurs when two

plates are spreading apart, as at
seafloor ridges or continental rift
zones such as the East Africa Rift.
Molten rock rises from the Earth’s
center to fill the gap.
Transform margins mark slip-sliding
plates, such as California's San
Andreas fault. The San Andreas fault
marks the location where the North
America and Pacific plates grind past
each other in a horizontal motion.

The plates do not slide smoothly, but

build tension and release it in the form
of an earthquake.
The rocks that made up the mantle are made mostly of
silicate minerals. Common silicates found in the mantle
include pyroxene, olivine and garnet.

PYROXENE OLIVINE GARNET

A xenolith is a piece of
rock trapped in another
type of rock. Most of the
time, a xenolith is a rock
embedded in magma
while the magma was
cooling.
Magma is the molten rock
beneath the Earths crust
that emerges as lava
during a volcanic eruption.
 The transitional boundary
between the mantle and the core
is known as the GUTENBERG
DISCONTINUITY. It was named
after the German discoverer, Beno
Gutenburg
( 1889 – 1960).

This boundary is not fixed because

of changes in heat flow.
When heat in the mantle slowly
dissipates, the molten core gradually
solidifies and shrinks, moving this
boundary deeper and deeper within
Earth’s core.
 CORE
• The core is made up of iron (Fe) and
nickel (Ni).
• The iron in the outer core is in liquid form,
which is why the iron core is known to be
liquid while the inner core is solid.
• The iron is particularly important because
it is the primary source of Earth’s
magnetic field.
• The magnetic field, particularly in the outer
core , extends outward to protect Earth
from the solar winds by deflecting these
winds towards outer space. Without this
magnetic field , solar winds could
destroy Earth’s atmosphere and will
destroy all living forms on the planet.
 There is also a transitional
boundary between the inner and
outer core which is the
LEHMANN DISCONTINUITY
which was discovered by a Danish
seismologist Inge Lehmann (1888
– 1993).
• When a large earthquake occurred
near New Zealand, Lehmann
studied the shock waves and
realized that these waves had
traveled some distance into the
core and then bounced off some
kind of boundary.
HYDROSPHERE
 A surfer rides a wave in
the Pacific Ocean near Big
Sur, California, United
States.
Oceans cover more than
70 percent of Earth's
surface, making them the
biggest part of the
hydrosphere. The
hydrosphere is simply the
total of all the water in
Earth's atmosphere.
 Fog, seen here near
Howe Sound, British
Columbia, Canada,
makes up a large part
of the hydrosphere.
Fog, clouds, and mist
are examples of water
vapor suspended in the
atmosphere.
 This stream bed, near
Atlanta, Georgia, United
States, is usually dry.
Rain and snow help
form rivers, lakes, and
aquifers, important
parts of the
hydrosphere.
Freshwater resources
like these make up less
than three percent of
Earth's hydrosphere.
 Pancake ice clumps
together near Antarctica.
Sea ice like this forms in
colder temperatures than
fresh water. Fresh water
freezes at about 0
degrees Celsius
(32 degrees Fahrenheit).
Sea ice freezes at about -
1.2 degrees Celsius (28.8
degrees Fahrenheit).
 HYDROSPHERE
A
hydrosphere
is the total
amount of
water on a
planet.

The hydrosphere
includes water On Earth, liquid
that is on the A planet's water exists on
surface of the hydrosphere the surface in the
planet, can be liquid, form of oceans,
underground, and lakes, and rivers.
vapor, or ice.
in the air.
 Earth is sometimes called
the blue planet or
“The Blue Marble”.

This image taken from

Apollo 17 in December 1972
is perhaps the first to be called
“The Blue Marble.” The dark
blue ocean and swirling cloud
patterns remind us of the
importance of the oceans
and atmosphere.
The global ocean is
certainly the most
prominent feature of the
hydrosphere, blanketing
nearly 71 percent of
Earth’s surface to an
average depth of about
3800 meters (12,500 feet).
It accounts for about 97
percent of Earth’s water
The water cycle shows the
continuous movement of
water within the Earth and
atmosphere. It is a complex
system that includes many
different processes. Liquid
water evaporates into water
vapor, condenses to form
clouds, and precipitates back
to earth in the form of rain
and snow.
Through the sun’s energy , water
changes to different forms in
order to reach both living and
non-living things in farther and
deeper places on earth.
Look up. Way up. The
clouds you see in the
sky, the wind that is
moving the trees or the
flag in your school yard,
even the sunshine you
feel on your face—
these are all a result of
Earth’s atmosphere.
ATMOSPHERE
Earth is surrounded by a life-giving gaseous
envelope called the atmosphere.

This thin blanket of air is nevertheless an integral part of

the planet. It not only provides the air that we breathe
but also protects us from the Sun’s dangerous ultraviolet
radiation.
While oxygen is necessary for most life on Earth,
the majority of Earth’s atmosphere is not oxygen.
Earth’s atmosphere is composed of about 78
percent nitrogen, 21 percent oxygen, 0.9 percent
argon, and 0.1 percent other gases. Trace
amounts of carbon dioxide, methane, water
vapor, and neon are some of the other gases that
make up the remaining 0.1 percent.
These gases are found in atmospheric layers
(troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere,
thermosphere, and exosphere) defined by
unique features such as temperature and
pressure.
Closest to the surface of
Earth, we have the
troposphere. “Tropos”
means change. This layer
gets its name from the
weather that is constantly
changing and mixing up the
gases in this part of our
atmosphere.
When you feel the wind on your face, see clouds in
the sky, and watch a bird flap its wings in flight,
you’re experiencing the troposphere. It’s a pretty
nice layer to call home.
TROPOSPHERE
The layer closest to Earth’s surface is the troposphere,
reaching from about seven and 15 kilometers (five to 10
miles) from the surface.
The majority of the mass of the entire atmosphere is
contained in the troposphere—between
approximately 75 and 80 percent. Most of the water
vapor in the atmosphere, along with dust and ash
particles, are found in the troposphere—explaining
why most of Earth’s clouds are located in this layer.
Temperatures in the troposphere decrease with
altitude.
This is the layer when we talk
about oxygen levels, the one layer
that contains the most of this gas
every living thing on this planet
needs. The higher we go in this
layer of the atmosphere, the
thinner the air gets. This means
that humans would have a harder
time breathing than in the lowest
parts of the troposphere.
This gives you an idea of why it becomes so challenging
when we climb high mountain peaks, and climbers take
extra oxygen if needed.
Here are the main takeaways that you need to know about the troposphere:

 The troposphere is the layer we live in containing all the air that we
breathe.
 All day-to-day weather occurs in the troposphere.
 80% of atmosphere mass is in the troposphere and it’s mostly just nitrogen
and oxygen.
 The troposphere is bounded by the tropopause. Then, the stratosphere is
directly above it.
 Propeller aircrafts and conventional aviation fly in the troposphere for air
traffic.
 Clouds form in the troposphere.
Prior to reaching the next layer
above the troposphere is a thin
buffer zone called
TROPOPAUSE.
STRATOSPHERE

The stratosphere is the next layer up

from Earth’s surface. It reaches from the
top of the troposphere, which is called
the tropopause, to an altitude of
approximately 50 kilometers (30 miles)

Temperatures in the stratosphere

increase with altitude.
A high concentration of ozone, a
molecule composed of three
atoms of oxygen, makes up the
ozone layer of the
stratosphere. This ozone
absorbs some of the incoming
solar radiation, shielding life on
Earth from potentially harmful
ultraviolet (UV) light, and is
responsible for the temperature
increase in altitude.
The UV light is not
technically stopped in this
layer, but the conversion
from ultraviolet light to
heat occurs there. That is
why holes in the ozone
layer (known as the
ozone hole) are
dangerous for us.
 Without the ozone layer, most of the life-forms on Earth
would have perished. In past decades , the ozone layer has
been observed to be thinning.
 Certain sprays and chemicals used in modern appliances
use ozone-depleting substances (ODS) that directly
destroy the ozone molecules in the ozone layer.
 Most of the ODS contain chlorine.
 Examples of ODS are some hair sprays, refrigerants and
solvents.
Above the stratosphere is another
thin buffer zone called stratopause.
This zone separates stratosphere
from the mesosphere.
 MESOSPHERE
The mesosphere lies between the thermosphere and the
stratosphere. “Meso” means middle, and this is the
highest layer of the atmosphere in which the gases are
all mixed up rather than being layered by their mass.

The mesosphere is 22 miles (35 kilometers) thick. The

air is still thin, so you wouldn’t be able to breathe up in
the mesosphere. But there is more gas in this layer than
there is out in the thermosphere.
The temperatures here behave as they do in the
troposphere. So, the higher you go, the colder it gets.
 – This layer may be the coldest because
-The

the heat from the sun is decreased as

absorbed by the thermosphere which is
directly above it and because of the
absence of radiaton-absorbing gases.
Have you ever seen a meteor
shower, where meteors burn up and
streak across the sky? Some people
call them shooting stars. Those
meteors are burning up in the
mesosphere. The meteors make it
through the exosphere and
thermosphere without much trouble
because those layers don’t have
much air. But when they hit the
mesosphere, there are enough gases
to cause friction and create heat.
 The thin buffer zone above the space
rocks, like meteors, burn up or break
down into smaller pieces.
 The thin buffer zone above the
mesosphere is called mesopause.
 THERMOSPHERE
The thermosphere layer is located
between 100 and 800 km above the
Earth’s surface level. And the
interesting fact is that its name is
‘Thermo’ because high temperatures
are found in this layer. The
Thermosphere is under constant attack
from UV radiation coming from the Sun
and the space around Earth. This is
also why the temperatures in this layer
can even reach up to 2000° C.
The thermosphere layer is the hottest because
it absorbs highly energetic heat from the sun.

This extreme heat causes the atmospheric

particles to become electrically charged making
it possible for radio waves to bounce off and be
received beyond the horizon.
The Northern Lights (also
known as Aurora Borealis)
and Southern Lights (known
as Aurora Australis) mostly
occur in the thermosphere.
Charged particles (e.g.,
electrons and protons) from
space collide at high latitudes
with atoms and molecules in
the thermosphere.
These collisions excite them into
higher energy states. Those atoms
and molecules shed this excess
energy by emitting photons of light,
which we see as colorful auroral
displays.
 The rate of intensity of aurora
depends on the strength of the
solar wind, Hence, during an
intense solar storm, more visible,
colorful lights can be seen in the
sky.
 The type of collision electrically
charged particles also affects the
colors that appear.
 For example, collision with
oxygen produces yellow and
green colors, while collision with
nitrogen produces red, violet and
blue colors.
There exists a thermopause above
the thermosphere which also serves
a buffer a long with exosphere and
which separates Earth’s atmosphere
from space.
 EXOSPHERE
 The exosphere is the outermost layer of
our atmosphere. “Exo” means outside.
 The final and the highest layer is known
as the Exosphere.
 This layer separates the rest of the
atmosphere from outer space.
 It’s about 6,200 miles (10,000 kilometers)
thick. That’s almost as wide as Earth itself.
The exosphere is really, really big. That
means that to get to outer space, you
have to be really far from Earth.
The exosphere has gases like hydrogen and helium, but
they are very spread out. There is a lot of empty space in
between. There is no air to breathe too.
 BIOSPHERE
 The biosphere is made up of the
parts of the Earth where life
exists – all ecosystems.
 The biosphere extends from the
deepest root systems of trees, to
the dark environments of ocean
trenches, to lush rain forests, high
mountaintops and transition
zones like this one, where ocean
and terrestrial ecosystems meat.
 Biosphere existed 3.5 billion years ago.
The biosphere’s earliest life-forms , called prokaryotes , survived
without oxygen. Some prokaryotes developed a unique chemical
process. They were able to use sunlight to make simple sugars
and oxygen out of water and carbon dioxide. A process called
photosynthesis.
These photosynthetic organisms were so plentiful that they
changed the biosphere.
Over a long period of time, the atmosphere developed a mix of
oxygen and other gases that could sustain new forms of life.
The addition of oxygen to the biosphere allowed more complex
life-forms to evolve.
 Millions of different plants and other photosynthetic species
developed.
 Animals , which consume plants and animals evolved.
 Bacteria and other organisms evolved to decompose or break
down , dead animals and plants.
 The biosphere benefits from this food web.
 The remains of dead plants and animals release nutrients into the
soil and ocean. These nutrients are absorbed by growing plants.
These exchange of food and energy makes
the biosphere a self-supporting and self-
regulating system.
The biosphere is sometimes thought of as
.

one large ecosystem – a complex

community of living and non-living things
functioning as a single unit.
More often, however, the biosphere is
described as having many ecosystems
 People play an important part of maintaining
the flow of energy in the biosphere.
 Sometimes, however, people disrupt the flow.
 For example, in the atmosphere, oxygen levels
decrease and carbon dioxide levels increase
when people clear forests or burn fossil fuels
such as coal and oil.
 Oil spills and industrial wastes threaten life in
the hydrosphere.
The future of the biosphere
will depend on how people
interact with other living
things within the zone of
life.