EARTH SUBSYSTEM

GEOSPHERE
The Geosphere describes all of the rocks,
minerals and ground that are found on and in Earth.
This includes all of the mountains on the surface, as
well as all of the liquid rock in the mantle below us
and the minerals and metals of the outer and inner
cores. The continents, the ocean floor, all of the
rocks on the surface, and all of the sand in the
deserts are all considered part of the geosphere.
Basically, if it looks like solid ground, it's part of the
'ground' sphere.

HYDROSPHERE
Planet Earth has been called the "Blue Planet"
due to the abundant water on its surface. Over 70
percent of the surface area of the earth is covered
by water. All the earth’s water, in liquid form, those
that are contained in rocks, soil and the air, comprise
the earth’s hydrosphere.
  Surface Water: Includes the ocean as well as
water from lakes, rivers and creeks.
 Ground Water: Includes water trapped in the
soil and groundwater.

THE HYDROLOGIC CYCLE (WATER CYCLE)

Water on earth is continuously moving. It
endlessly circulating through the hydro- logic cycle.
As water goes in a cycle, it changes its states. From
liquid to ice to gas and back again. Sun heats water
causing the water to evaporate. Rising air currents
take the water vapor up in the atmosphere. The
vapor rises into the air where cooler temperatures
cause it to condense into clouds. Air currents move
the cloud. Cloud particles collide, grow, and fall out
of the sky as precipitation. Most of the precipitation
return to the oceans.

CRYOSPHERE. : Includes ice caps and glaciers.

BIOSPHERE
The biosphere is where all forms of life exist. Since
life exist in the air, in water and on the ground, its
boundaries overlap other “sphere” because life can
be found everywhere on earth. The biosphere is
sometimes thought of as one large ecosystem — a
complex community of living and nonliving things
functioning as a single unit.
ATMOSPHERE
A very huge envelope of air that surrounds the earth and
pulled by the gravitational force of the earth is called
atmosphere. The earth’s atmosphere is primarily
composed of 78 percent nitrogen and 21 percent of
oxygen. Other gases like argon, carbon dioxide, carbon
monoxide, ozone, hydrogen, helium and other inert gases
make up the remaining 1 percent.

The earth’s atmosphere is made up of different

layers as shown in the table below.
Layer Name Description
 Air closest to the Earth, where
Troposphere we live, where weather is
formed, airplanes fly at the top
of it.
 10 miles (16 km) above the
surface of the Earth.
 Ozone layer is part of it (it
Stratosphere helps shield the earth from
harmful sun rays)
 30 miles (48 km) above the
surface of the Earth
  Coldest layer, meteorites break
Mesosphere apart here
 50 miles (80 km) above the
surface of the Earth
 Five times as deep as all other
Thermosphere layers combined, very hot (up
to 2000ºC)
 300 miles (483 km) above the
surface of the Earth
 Satellites circle the Earth here,
Exosphere fades into space
 Beyond 300 miles above the
surface of the Earth