Download Earth`s Spheres

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LAB: Earth’s Spheres - Interpreting Charts and Graphs
Introduction:
The Earth is composed of a series of spheres held together by
gravity and thus arranged from lowest to highest density moving
towards Earth’s center. The outer “spheres” consist of the
atmosphere, hydrosphere, and lithosphere. Earth’s interior consists
of many layers as well, including the crust, asthenosphere, mantle,
outer core, and inner core.
Purpose:
You will be able to identify and describe the various spheres and layers of
the Earth from charts, graphs and tables found in the reference tables.
Materials:
reference tables, colored pencils or crayons
Procedure: A. Earth Spheres
1. Atmosphere - The atmosphere is not very deep when compared to the radius of the
Earth. About 99.9% of the atmosphere is within 30 miles of the Earth’s surface.
Nevertheless, there are some atmospheric gases out to distances of several hundred miles.
The atmosphere has been divide into a number of layers, depending on the air
temperature: troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, and thermosphere. In the
troposphere and mesosphere, the temperature decreases with height. In the stratosphere,
the temperature is either constant or increases slowly with height. In the thermosphere,
the temperature increases rapidly with height. At about 350 miles, the atmosphere
becomes the exosphere or outer space.
a.
Use your reference table diagram on page 14 to fill in the characteristics of the
atmosphere in Chart A that follows:
Chart A
Layer
Altitude Temperature Temperature Water
(km)
(ºC)
Change
Vapor
From
Troposphere
Stratosphere
Mesosphere
Thermosphere
To
From
To
Increase/decrease
Yes/No
Pressure
Increase/decrease
b.
Figure 1 shows the variations of temperature with altitude in the Earth’s
atmosphere. Those levels at which the temperature lapse rate changes sign
separate the atmosphere into four layers. The lowest separating layer is the
tropopause, then the stratopause, etc. Label these levels on the drawing that
follows.
c.
Labels the various layers - troposphere, etc. Use your reference tables for the
necessary information
d.
In the upper atmosphere, about 30 km., there is a layer of ozone gas. It strongly
absorbs ultraviolet radiation. This causes a warming of the middle layer of the
atmosphere, but prevents most harmful ultraviolet radiation from reaching the
Earth. Ultraviolet radiation has been shown to cause skin cancers and plant
cancers. Label “ozone” in the layer in which it belongs.
e.
Draw an “X” in the layer where commercial airplanes fly to avoid storms.
Figure 1
Altitude (km)
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
2. Hydrosphere - The hydrosphere is the layer of liquid water and solid ice that lies
between the atmosphere and much of the upper layer of the Earth’s interior. The
hydrosphere consists of the oceans, which cover about 70% of Earth’s surface, and other
bodies of water such as lakes, rivers, streams, and the polar ice caps. The hydrosphere is
relatively thin, averaging only 3.8 kilometers in thickness.
3. Lithosphere - The layer of rock that forms the solid outer shell of the Earth is the
lithosphere. The lithosphere lies directly beneath the atmosphere or the hydrosphere and
is approximately 100 km. thick The upper portion of the lithosphere is called the crust
and the bottom portion is the top of the asthenosphere.
a.
Use the chart in your reference tables on page 1 to compare the chemical
composition of the hydrosphere to the atmosphere, and the crust. Use colored
pencils/crayons/markers to complete graphs A, B, and C for each Earth sphere.
Graph A
Hydrosphere Composition
Graph A - On the pie graph and the bar graph below, graph the percentage of elements in
the earth’s hydrosphere. On the graphs, label the elements and color the hydrogen
black, the oxygen blue, and the other elements green.
Pie Graph
Bar Graph
Hydrogen
Oxygen
Other
Graph B
Atmosphere Composition
Graph B - On the pie graph and the bar graph below, graph the percentage of elements in
the earth’s atmosphere (troposphere). On the graphs, label the elements and color the
nitrogen red, the oxygen blue, and the other elements green.
Pie Graph
Bar Graph
Nitrogen
Oxygen
Other
Graph C
Crust Composition (% by mass)
Graph C - On the pie graph and the bar graph below, graph the percentage of elements in
the earth’s lithosphere. On the graphs, label the elements and color the silicon yellow,
the oxygen blue, and the other elements green.
Pie Graph
Bar Graph
Silicon
Oxygen
Other
B. Earth’s Interior
The region extending from the rocky part of the Earth’s surface to Earth’s center is called
Earth’s interior. The center of the Earth is very hot because of all the pressure on it.
The deeper it is, the hotter it gets. Rocks that are 100 km. deep or so are melted. Metals
like iron, silver, tin, and gold are melted too. The pressure near the center of the Earth is
so great that metal is hot enough to be melted is pressed into a solid state in spite of its
heat.
a.
Use the reference table chart on page 10 to label the name of each layer of the
Earth in Figure 2 below.
b.
Color each layer as indicated.
c.
Complete the missing information in Chart B.
Figure 2
Color the solid metal BLACK
Color the liquid metal RED
Color the hot solid rock ORANGE
Color the plastic-like rock YELLOW
Color the crust BROWN
Color the surface BLUE where there is water
Color the surface GREEN where there is land
Chart B - Inner Layers
Layer
Depth
(km)
From
Crust
To
Density
(g/cm3)
From
Composition
Phase
(rock/metal)
(solid/liquid)
To
Granite
Basalt
Asthenosphere
Mantle
Outer Core
Inner Core
Discussion Questions:
1.
What characteristic of the atmosphere is most important in determining the
interfaces between the layers?
2.
Of what importance is the ozone layer found in the stratosphere?
3.
Why is the troposphere the only layer to have “weather”?
4.
Most of the Earth’s atmosphere is located in the bottom layer. Explain why this
occurs even though it is the thinnest layer.
5.
Using you ESRTs, what two parts of the Earth make up the lithosphere?
6.
Describe what happens to temperature, pressure, and density as you approach the
center of the Earth.
C. The Ozone Layer
Reading Comprehension Read the portion of the article on the Ozone layer below
and answer the following questions based on the reading. Use complete sentences.
Ozone Layer No Longer Thinning
U.N. officials expect the protective layer in Earth's upper atmosphere will be
restored to normal levels by 2045.
Thu Sep 16, 2010 02:24 PM ET
Content provided by AFP
http://news.discovery.com/earth/ozone-layer-earth.html
The size and shape of the
ozone hole is shown in
2009. The protective ozone
layer in the earth's upper
atmosphere has stopped
thinning and should largely
be restored by mid century
thanks to a ban on harmful
chemicals. NASA Earth
Observatory
The protective ozone layer in the Earth's upper atmosphere has stopped thinning and should largely be
restored by mid century thanks to a ban on harmful chemicals, UN scientists said on Thursday.
The "Scientific Assessment of Ozone Depletion 2010" report said a 1987 international treaty that phased
out chlorofluorocarbons (CFC) -- substances used in refrigerators, aerosol sprays and some packing foams -- had been successful.
Ozone provides a natural protective filter against harmful ultra-violet rays from the sun, which can cause
sunburn, cataracts and skin cancer as well as damage vegetation.
First observations of a seasonal ozone hole appearing over the Antarctic occurred in the 1970s and the
alarm was raised in the 1980s after it was found to be worsening under the onslaught of CFCs, prompting
196 countries to join the Montreal Protocol.
"The Montreal Protocol signed in 1987 to control ozone depleting substances is working, it has protected us
from further ozone depletion over the past decades," said World Meteorological Organization head of
research Len Barrie.
"Global ozone, including ozone in the polar region is no longer decreasing but not yet increasing," he told
journalists.
The 300 scientists who compiled the four yearly ozone assessment now expect that the ozone layer in the
stratosphere will be restored to 1980 levels in 2045 to 2060, according to the report, "slightly earlier" than
expected.
Although CFCs have been phased out, they accumulated and persist in the atmosphere and the effect of the
curbs takes years to filter through.
1. What does the ozone layer do?
2. What substance is blamed for ozone destruction?
3. Explain what it means when the article says CFC’s “accumulated and persist in
the atmosphere”.
4. What layer of the Earth’s atmosphere does the ozone layer exist in and how high
above the Earth’s surface is that (in km)?