Chapter Two: Note Outline
A Living Planet
Space and the Universe
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If you look at the sky on a clear night, you can see ___________________ of stars.
With a telescope you can see ___________________. Beyond that exist ___________________.
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The ___________________ is made up of all existing things, including space and Earth.
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Most ___________________ believe that the universe has been ___________________ continuously
to an ___________________ size.
The Solar System
• The Sun and the group of bodies that revolve around it are called the _____________ _____________.
Earth’s Zones
• Scientists have identified ___________________ major zones in Earth’s interior.
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The planet’s center is like a nuclear ___________________, where decaying radioactive elements
generate ___________________.
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Earth’s center, or ___________________, both temperatures and pressures are very high.
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The ___________________ is divided into ___________________ and ___________________ layers.
The inner core is ___________________.
• The outer core is mostly dense liquid ___________________, mainly iron and nickel.
Earth’s Core
• Beyond the core is the __________________, the zone that has _________________ of Earth’s mass.
•
The upper-most layer is the ___________________.
• Although it is up to _______ miles thick, the crust is comparatively ___________________.
Magma
• Huge currents carry heat from the core through the ________________ to the _________________.
• Liquid rock ___________________ the earth is called ___________________.
Lava
• When liquid rock spills out into the ___________________ it is called ___________________.
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Magma erupts from vents called ___________________.
The Earth’s Four Spheres
• The geographers divide the earth system into ___________________ major parts.
Each part is called a ___________________ because it occupies a shell around the planet.
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These four spheres are the ___________________, ___________________, ___________________,
and ___________________.
Atmosphere
• The ___________________ is the envelope of ___________________ that surrounds Earth.
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It is the least dense and outermost sphere, extending from Earth’s surface to space.
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Earth’s ___________________ holds the atmosphere around the planet.
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About ________ of Earth’s atmosphere is a gas called ___________________, and about ________
___________________.
The rest is made up of carbon dioxide ozone, and other gases.
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These gases and water vapor sustain life on Earth.
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The atmosphere also protects the planet from the sun’s harmful ___________________.
Lithosphere
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The ___________________ is the solid crust of the planet.
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This outer crust includes rocks and soil.
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It forms Earth’s ___________________, ___________________, and ___________________ floor.
Hydrosphere
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The ___________________ is all of the Earth’s water.
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Water covers about ________ of the Earth’s surface.
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The ___________________ includes water in ___________________, ___________________, and
___________________ forms.
Liquid water is found in the oceans, lakes, rivers, and underground.
___________________ and ___________________ are made up of liquid droplets.
Solid water, or ___________________, is found on both land and sea.
Biosphere
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The ___________________ is the part of Earth that includes all life forms.
It includes all planets and animals.
The biosphere overlaps the other three spheres.
It extends from deep ocean floors to high in the atmosphere.
Four Spheres
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Earth’s four major spheres are all ___________________. Each one affects the other.
The hydrosphere supplies people with water. It is also home for plants and animals.
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The ___________________ effects the lithosphere when rain ___________ _______ rocks and washes
them away.
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It also constantly interacts with the atmosphere, causing ___________________ and
___________________.
The Hydrosphere
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___________________ is necessary for life, but ________ of the world’s water is too
___________________ for most uses.
The process of removing the salt in water is called _____________________________.
Countries dominated by deserts use this process to get freshwater, but it is very expensive.
Less than ________ of the world’s water is ___________________, and most of that is frozen in
glaciers and the ice caps.
Hydrologic Cycle
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The amount of ___________________ on Earth stays much the same over time.
But its physical state is always changing from ___________________ to ___________________ to
___________________.
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The ___________________ of water through the hydrosphere is called the ________________
______________.
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___________________ energy ___________________, and ___________________ drive the cycle.
When water is heated by solar energy it may change to ___________________.
This is called ___________________.
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Most water in the atmosphere has evaporated from the ___________________.
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As water vapor ___________________, it ___________________ and forms tiny droplets in a process
called ___________________. These droplets join to form ___________________.
They then grow to become ______________ ______________ heavy enough to fall to Earth.
Precipitation
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___________________ falling to Earth (such as rain, snow, or hail) is called ___________________.
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If it falls on land, it is stored in ___________________, in a ___________________, a
___________________, or below the ground.
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Surface water either flows to the ___________________ in a river or it ___________________ again
into the atmosphere.
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As ___________________ falls on continents and islands, it flows down hills and mountains
___________________ the lowlands and coasts.
The first and ___________________ streams from this runoff are called ___________________.
Tributary
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As these ___________________ join, they form ___________________ streams, and farther
downstream they eventually form rivers.
Any smaller stream or river that flows into a ___________________ river is called a
___________________.
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In the U. S. the Arkansas, Missouri, and Ohio Rivers are major ___________________ of the Mississippi
River.
Continental Shelves
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The continental surface extends under the shallow ocean water around the continents.
These areas are called ___________________ _________________.
At the edges of the continental shelves, the seafloor drops ___________________ down to the
________________ ________________.
Plate Tectonics
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The theory of plate ___________________explains how forces within the planet create
___________________.
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The tectonics theory views Earth’s crust as divided into more than a dozen rigid, slow moving
___________________. The plates can be compared to the cracked shell of a hard-boiled egg.
Pangaea
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Scientist believe that about ________ ___________________ years ago all of the modern continent
were part of one supercontinent called ___________________.
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The ___________________ slowly move across the ____________ ___________, usually less than an
___________________ per year.
This process is called ___________________ ______________.
Along the plate boundaries, the crust is subject to stresses that lead to melting, bending, and breaking.
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Volcanoes often form __________ _________and signal that a plate ___________________ is nearby.
___________________ take place when tectonic forces cause masses of rock inside the
___________________ to break.
Plate Movement
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Three types of movement at plate boundaries are possible.
First, the plates can __________ ___________, or ___________________.
The second plate movement occurs when plates ___________________.
The third way plates move is laterally when they __________ __________ each other.
Divergent Plate Movement
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Long ago the Earth’s history the crust sorted itself into layers of different kinds of rocks.
The lower layer, made of _____________ ___________, is found on the ocean floor.
Lying on top is a patchy layer of _____________ ___________.
This layer makes up the ___________________.
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___________________ are also common near ___________________ boundaries.
Subduction Zones
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When ___________________ plates on the ocean floor collide, one slides underneath the other.
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This plate boundary is called a ___________________, and the deep valley marking the plate collision
is called a ___________________.
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The plate sliding ___________________ generates heat as it grinds against the plate above it.
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This ___________________ may produce a row of volcanoes which rise enough to become
___________________.
Convergent Plate Movement
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___________________ plate boundaries are locations where lithospheric plates are moving
___________________ one another.
The plate collisions that occur in these areas can produce ___________________, ________________
____________________, and ___________________ ____________________.
Transform Plate Movement
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___________________ ______________ _________________ are locations where two plates
______________________ past one another.
The fracture zone that forms a transform plate boundary is known as a _____________ ____________.
Most transform faults are found in the ___________ ___________and connect offsets in the
_____________________ _______________
Plates Moving Laterally
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When plates move ___________________ past each other, long fractures develop along the edges of
both plates.
The ___________________ along these boundaries is ___________________ uniform.
While squeezing produces ___________________ mountains, a little spreading generates
___________________ valleys.
Earthquakes can be ___________________ in these areas.
The San Andreas Fault is an example of this.
Rift Valleys
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A few ___________________ plate boundaries lie under continents.
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In these places, the _________________ stretches until it breaks, forming ___________ ___________.
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The biggest rift valleys are in eastern ___________________
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This is an example of a ___________ ___________ in ___________________.
Note the recessive line due to crust ___________________.
Weathering and Erosion
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Rocks break and decay over time in a process called ___________________.
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Weathering is usually ___________________ and difficult to detect.
However, even the hardest rock will, eventually, ___________________ down.
Chemical Weathering
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___________________ processes cause some weathering.
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Substances in the ___________________ and ___________________ react with the rocks, creating
___________________ and slowly ___________________ the rock.
Weathering
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___________________ is also caused by ___________________ processes that ___________________
rocks into smaller pieces.
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In high mountains repeated ___________________ and ___________________ of water inside a
cracked rock can cause it to break even more.
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The ___________________ of trees can ___________________ rocks apart.
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Weathering breaks rocks into smaller particles of gravel, sand, and mud called ___________________.
Erosion
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Along with ___________________, the other process changing landforms on earth’s surface is
___________________.
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___________________ is the ___________________ of surface material from one location to another.
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___________________, ___________________, and ___________________ can cause erosion.
Water, Waves, and Wind
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___________________ is the ___________________ important force of ___________________.
Rainfall can cause rapid erosion where few plants protect the ground.
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Water erosion can begin as tiny ___________________ on hillsides.
If erosion is severe, a channel may grow into a ___________________.
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Running water can even ___________________ deep ___________________, such as the
________________ ___________________.
Water Erosion
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___________________ action is another powerful force of erosion.
During a storm, waves can tear away tons of ___________________ sand within a few hours.
Waves can slowly change ___________________ over many years.
Wind Erosion
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___________________ is another force that causes erosion.
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___________________ protect most land surfaces from wind action.
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However, in ___________________ lands, on beaches, and in places where people or animals have
___________________ the ___________________, wind can cause significant erosion.