EARTH SYSTEM SCIENCE LAB ACTIVITY
BACKGROUND (from NASA Spheres of Earth Activity)
One approach to studying Earth is by taking an Earth Systems Science
approach. Earth Systems Science involves looking at Earth as a set of
systems. These systems are all connected and influence one another
as well as the Earth as a whole. Each individual system consists of
features that together play a role in keeping our Earth in balance. A
change within one system will cause a change in another. The past,
present, and future of our planet is based on the constant
interaction among these systems.
1. Atmosphere:
This sphere relates to meteorological features and phenomena such as weather, clouds, or aerosols (particles in the air).
It includes an ever‐changing mixture of gas and small particles located above and surrounding the Earth’s surface.
Earth Features include:
 Clouds, Hurricanes, and Cyclones
 Aurora
 Air Pollution/Aerosols
 Dust and Sand Storms
2. Biosphere:
This sphere is associated with living systems such as biomes or ecosystems. This includes life on land, in the oceans and
rivers, and even life we cannot see with the naked eye.
Earth Features include:
 Coastal Biomes
 Forests
 Deserts
 Grasslands
 Urban/Agricultural Ecosystems
3. Hydrosphere:
This sphere is associated with water in solid (ice) and liquid states. Water in a gas state (water vapor) is probably best
considered as a feature of the atmosphere.
Earth Features include:
 Oceans
 Lakes and Rivers
 Snow
 Ice Bergs
 Glaciers
4. Litho/Geosphere:
This sphere is associated with solid portions of the Earth. It includes rocks, sediments and soils, surface landforms and
the processes that shape the surface.
Earth Features include:
 Fluvial & Alluvial Processes: Valley networks, river channels/canyons, deltas, alluvial fans
 Aeolian Processes: Sand dunes, yardangs, wind streaks ‐Tectonic Processes: Folds, faults, mountains Volcanic
Processes: Volcanoes, central vents, volcanic deposits
 Impact Processes: Impact craters
 Other Processes: Mass wasting processes, erosional processes
EARTH SYSTEM CONNECTIONS
As scientists focus on features within one Earth system, they must consider the influences from other systems.
Influences and visible effects can sometimes be obvious and other times may go almost unnoticed. There may be some
effects that are immediate, and others that may not be realized for years. Let’s take an oil spill due to an oil rig explosion
as an example. There are definite effects on the hydrosphere (ocean) from such a spill. You could immediately see the oil
images taken from space. But does an oil spill potentially affect other spheres? Unfortunately, it does. First, think of the
gases and smoke that would go into the atmosphere when an explosion occurred. The biosphere (marine life and coastal
ecosystems) are certainly harmed by the spill as well. As the oil reaches land, it becomes mixed in and absorbed into the
soils and sediment along the coast.
HANDS ON ACTIVITY
Drawing Connections
Part A: Annotate a Photograph of a Study Site
Example annotated photograph from a local study site in Greenville, PA. Click image to enlarge.
To annotate means to describe with short notes. Work with your group and choose a study
site around the school (check to get permission to go there). Take a photograph and email
it to someone in your group to print off. Annotate your study site photograph in the
following way:
1. Writing directly on the photograph of your study site, label the four major
components of the study site system: atmosphere, hydrosphere, geosphere, and
biosphere.
2. Write short descriptions of the interconnections among the components of the
system that you can see in your photograph. Follow these guidelines:
o
Use phrases or short sentences with verbs.
o
Make sure you are describing connections or relationships between components
of the system..
o
Write as clearly as possible.
o
If you run out of space for your annotations, put a number next to the feature in
the photograph that you're writing about, draw a small circle around the number
so that it will be easy to see, and write the annotations on a separate piece of
paper. Attach the piece of paper to your photograph.
3. As you work on your photograph annotations, here are some things to consider:
Heat is one way that energy is transferred from one place to another. What
o
happens during the day at your local study site when the sun is shining?
Biological process like eating, moving, and dying also help transfer energy. Do
o
you see any of those here? Where is the energy going?
What things at this location are capable of moving from one place to another?
o
Trees? Leaves? Soil? Rocks? Water? Some of these things might be moving really
slowly, but they are still moving. Can you find anything like that?
Checking In

Describe at least two interconnections at your study site that you never
thought about before doing this activity.
Drawing Connections
Part B: Draw a Simplified Diagram for Your Study Site
The different parts of the Earth system are connected by cyclic flows of energy, water, and important
chemical elements like carbon and nitrogen. Each cycle consists of reservoirs (places where energy,
water, and elements are stored), fluxes (the movement of matter from one reservoir to another),
and processes that change the form of energy, water, and elements.
Examples:

Reservoirs: clouds, oceans, soil, trees

Fluxes: precipitation, transpiration, ocean currents, wind, river flow

Processes: photosynthesis, condensation, decomposition, fire
Draw Your Diagram
Diagramming is a useful tool for developing an understanding of Earth as a system. Making a
diagram will help you focus on the most important components, connections, and systems at your
study site, that may be different from other study sites. Keep in mind that there is no one right way
to make a diagram. Your style of diagramming may be very different from someone else's. What
matters is that it is accurate and complete, and that it clearly communicates your ideas. Other
students must be able to understand your ideas just by looking at your diagram.
Starting with the photograph you annotated in Part A, work with a partner or in a small group to
create a simplified, more abstract diagram of your study site, showing how energy and matter flow
between components. Be aware that as you put together this simplified diagram, you will need to
make decisions about what is most important to show. This means that you are making decisions
about what the essential reservoirs, fluxes, and processes at your study site are.
1. On a blank sheet of paper, draw and label the four major components of the study site system
(atmosphere, hydrosphere, geosphere, and biosphere).
2. Use arrows to represent the verbs you used in your annotated photograph. Draw one-headed
arrows to indicate which direction each interaction is occurring. Show only one direction on
each arrow.
3. On the shaft of the arrow, indicate what is moving from one component to the other (such as
rain moving from the atmosphere to the geosphere).
Checking In
Use these questions to reflect on your diagram.

What have you learned about ways that the components of a study site interact as a system,
that you feel confident about?

What are you having trouble understanding about the interactions among components of a
study site?

What would you like to know more about?