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Systems and Spheres
Earth’s Systems
 Receive inputs and produce outputs
 Example: Gulf of Mexico
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Receives input of freshwater, sediments, nutrients
Gulf outputs a harvest of shrimp and fish
The system output becomes input to the global economic
system and digestive system of people consuming the fish
Feedback loops
 A feedback loop occurs when an event is both an input
and output in the same system
 Can either be negative or positive
 Negative: Stabilizes the system

If the wolf population (predator) decreases, the moose
population (prey) will increase
 Positive: Destabilizes the system

Clearing of plants will erode a stream bed which will increase
water flow and further increase the stream bed
All Systems Interact!!
 Example #1: Albedo Effect and Climate Change
 More Greenhouse gas (Atmosphere change) = Warmer
Temperature
 Polar ice caps melt (Hydrosphere change)
 Darker color of ocean replaces white color of ice
 Less radiation is reflected from Earth’s Surface
 Positive Feedback Loop!!!
All Systems Interact!!!
 Example #2: Wolves change Rivers
 Describe at least 3 interactions in the
video.
 Draw a picture of a feedback loop in the
video
Write a one sentence analysis of the graph depicted
below. List one feedback loop created by the trend
observed in the graph.
Layers of
Atmosphere
• Troposphere: 0–11 km;
movement of air, weather
• Stratosphere: 11–50 km;
ozone layer, absorbs and
scatters UV rays
• Mesosphere: 50–80 km;
meteoroids burn up
• Thermosphere: 80+ km;
disturbances produce
aurora borealis
Did You Know?
The stratosphere and
mesosphere are cold, but the
upper thermosphere can be
hotter than 1500°C.
Atmosphere
Contains the gases that
organisms need
 Oxygen: needed for
respiration
 Ozone: needed to filter
UV radiation
 Greenhouse gases
(CO2 and Methane):
needed to keep Earth’s
temperature warm
enough to support life
Properties of the
Atmosphere
 Composition: 78%
nitrogen, 21% oxygen, and
1% other gases (greenhouse
gases)
 Temperature: Varies
with location (due to angle
of sun and altitude)
 Pressure: In general,
air pressure decreases
with altitude; can be
measured using a
barometer.
Hydrosphere
 Consists of Earth’s water
 Most of Earth’s water
(97.5%) is salt water.
 Only 0.5% of Earth’s water
is unfrozen fresh water
usable for drinking or
irrigation.
 Frozen water is called the
cryosphere
 Earth’s available fresh
water includes surface
water and ground water.
(Most is groundwater!)
Water Cycle
Relative Humidity
• The ratio of water vapor in
air to the maximum amount
the same air could contain at
the same temperature
• Is affected by temperature
and location; in general,
warm air holds more water.
• When air cools, water vapor
may condense to liquid or to
ice. Water vapor can only
condense on surfaces, such
as a petal or a dust particle.
Rocks
 Naturally occurring solids
made up of minerals and
mineral-like materials
 Three types: igneous,
sedimentary,
metamorphic
 The rock cycle slowly
changes rocks from one
type to another through
heating, melting, cooling,
weathering, and erosion.
Types of Rocks
 Igneous: Form when magma or lava cools and solidifies;
can be intrusive or extrusive
Did You Know? In
general, the more slowly
igneous rock cools, the
larger its crystals.
Types of Rocks Continued….
 Sedimentary: Form when sediments cement
together or when water evaporates and leaves
behind minerals; can be clastic, chemical, or
biochemical
Types of Rocks continued (again)….
 Metamorphic: Form when heat or pressure
changes the crystalline structure of existing rock
Video
Rocks make Soil!!
• Soil is made up of
minerals (from rock),
organic matter (from
decay), air, and water.
Soil Formation
 Weathering: Physical and
chemical breaking of rocks
and minerals into smaller
pieces
 Erosion and deposition:
Pick-up, transport, and
drop-off of material from one
place to another
 Decomposition: Breakdown
of waste, organisms, and
organic material into simple
molecules
Soil Horizons
 Soil horizons are
distinct layers of
soil.
 A cross-section
of soil horizons is a
soil profile.
Biome Distribution
Biosphere
 The part of Earth in which living and nonliving things
interact
 Biotic: Living
 Abiotic: Non-living
Interactions of
Geosphere/Lithosphere
Affected by each sphere…
Effects each sphere by…
 Atmosphere: higher
 Atmosphere: Microbes in soil
greenhouse gas composition
will warm soils and increase
decomposition rate
 Hydrosphere: frost wedging
weathers rock and helps to
form soil
 Biosphere: vegetation helps
to decrease soil erosion and
improve soil fertility
transform atmospheric nitrogen
into nitrates; decomposition of
organic materials in soil
produces carbon dioxide and
methane
 Hydrosphere: runoff of
sediment effects turbidity of
streams and increases nutrient
load
 Biosphere: Increased rate of soil
formation/fertility will increase
the amount of plants which in
turn will increase biodiversity