Earth Science Final

December 2014

Mrs. Sagala-Riddle

The Branches of Earth Science

The Branche

s of Earth

Science

Astronomy

Geology

Meteorology

Oceanography

Environmental

Science

Earth’s 4 Spheres Atmosphere

Geosphere

Hydrosphere

Biosphere

Carbon Cycle

• Photosynthesis• Respiration• Combustion• Erosion• Decomposition

Layers of the Earth’s Atmosphere

Composition of Earth’s AtmosphereDuring Formation, Outgassing, & Present• During Formation: Hydrogen & Helium

• Outgassing: Outpouring of gases from the earth's interior, Other gases were injected into the atmosphere:• water vapor (produced rain - rivers, lakes, oceans)

• carbon dioxide

• Nitrogen

• Present: 78% Nitrogen 21% Oxygen 1% Other

Differences between Inner Planets, Outer Planets, Dwarf Planets, Exoplanets

Inner PlanetsRockyCloser to the sunOrbits the sunFew or no moons/no rings

Outer PlanetsGas planetsFurther from the sunOrbits the sunMany moons & ringsMade of ice & rock

Dwarf PlanetsSmaller than our planets, bigger than asteroidsMedium sized planetsOrbit the sun, not other planetsSphere (round) shaped

ExoplanetsDoes NOT orbit the sun, orbits other starsMost are gas giants

Parts of the Sun

Life Cycle of Stars like the Sun

• Nebula

• Protostar

• Star like the sun

• Red Giant

• Planetary Nebula

• White Dwarf

Life Cycle of a Massive Star

• Nebula

• Protostar

• Massive star

• Red supergiant

• Supernova

• Neutron star

Electromagnetic Spectrum

Steps of Nuclear Fusion

• Step 1 Proton fuses with Proton = Neutron + Proton (Releases Energy)

• Step 2 Neutron/Proton fuses with Proton = (Releases Energy)

• Step 3 2 Protons fuse with 2 Neutrons = (Releases Energy)

Hertzsprung Russell (HR) Diagram

Big Bang Theory

• All matter & energy in the universe was compressed into an extremely small

volume that 13 to 15 billion years ago exploded & expanded in all directions.

Nebular Hypothesis

• Explains the origin of the solar system.• A rotating nebula cooled & contracted,

throwing off rings of matter that contracted into planets & moons, while the great mass of the condensing nebula became the sun.

Giant Impact Hypothesis

• The Moon was formed out of the debris left over from an indirect collision between the Earth and an astronomical body the size of Mars,

• About 4.5 billion years ago

Deforestation

• Deforestation is clearing Earth's forests on a massive scale.

• Causes damage to the quality of the land.

• The world’s rain forests could completely vanish in a hundred years at the current rate of deforestation.

Greenhouse Effect

Red Shift (evidence of the Big Bang Theory)

• Red Shift (Red is the color for longer wavelengths)

• The observed wavelength of the light is longer when objects are moving away from us. The light is shifted towards the red end of the spectrum, RED SHIFT. A force that opposes gravity, pushing galaxies further apart.

Blue Shift

Parallax

• Shift in position of an object caused by your own motion.

• For example, if you look at some nearby object and move your head a little from side to side, the object looks like it is moving back and forth.

Astronomical Unit

• An astronomical unit (au) is a unit of length, roughly the distance from the Earth to the Sun.

Light Year

• A light-year is a unit of length used informally to express astronomical distances.

• It is equal to about 6 trillion miles.

• A light-year is the distance that light travels in vacuum in one Julian year.

PerihelionAphelion

• Point in the orbit of a planet, asteroid, or comet where it is nearest to the sun.

• Point in the orbit of a planet, asteroid, or comet at which it is furthest from the sun.

Constellation

• A constellation is a specific area of the celestial sphere.

• Star Patterns from which the constellations take their names.

• 88 recognized constellations, covering the entire sky.

Galaxy

• A massive, gravitationally bound system.

• Consists of stars, stellar remnants, gas, dust & dark matter.