Name ________________________________________________ Date ______________ Period ______
Lab 1: Think Globally
Part A: Earth System Science
Earth system science is the study of processes that move energy and materials among the geosphere or
lithosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere, and atmosphere.
The full Earth system is made up of four overlapping, interacting "spheres."
Geosphere (Lithosphere): the solid Earth (rock materials on the surface and in Earth's interior layers)
and soil.
Hydrosphere: all of Earth's bodies of water, including groundwater.
Biosphere: all living things, from microbes to humans and everything in between.
Atmosphere: the blanket of gas that surrounds the entire planet and extends to the edge of space. The
atmosphere includes air, precipitation, clouds, and atmospheric aerosols (tiny particles suspended in the
air).
Hydrosphere Nearly three quarters of our planet is covered by water. All bodies of water including
oceans, lakes, rivers, streams, and groundwater are part of the hydrosphere. The hydrosphere plays
several very important roles in the Earth system. Water is essential for life. Many plants and animals call
water their home, but all plants and animals need water to survive. People also use water every day for
things like industry and transportation, recreation, and making electricity.
Oceans, which contain over 97% of Earth's water, help regulate global climate by absorbing large
amounts of solar energy and circulating heat from the equator toward the poles through currents.
Surface ocean currents are also affected by winds in the atmosphere. Energy from the wind gets
transferred to the top layers of the ocean and helps circulate ocean water. Water is constantly moving
between the hydrosphere, geosphere or lithosphere, and atmosphere through plant transpiration
(evaporation of water from plant leaves).
Biosphere The biosphere includes all living things. Life on Earth exists in even the most unexpected
places including inside rocks on and below the Earth's surface, beneath oceans and polar ice, and even
floating in the air. Earth's unique weather and climate make it "just right" for life. The existence of life is
what sets Earth apart from other planets in our solar system.
The biosphere also impacts climate. Plants use energy from the sun to undergo photosynthesis, a
process that removes carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and adds oxygen. Animals (and humans)
breathe in oxygen and exhale carbon dioxide. Human activities like burning fossil fuels or forests, also
add greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide to the atmosphere. These gases can trap heat and keep it
from escaping into space, thus contributing to an overall warming of the planet.
Connections between the biosphere and the hydrosphere and geosphere or lithosphere are also
extremely important. All living things need water to survive. Many plants rely on soil for valuable
nutrients, and in turn, people and animals rely on those plants for food.
Atmosphere The atmosphere is more than just the air we breathe. It also includes wind, clouds, and
precipitation. This thin layer of gas that envelops Earth, traps heat to keep us warm; protects us from
harmful radiation; drives ocean currents that distribute heat and help regulate climate; brings rain to
thirsty crops; and much more.
The atmosphere also includes aerosols, which are tiny particles suspended in the air. Typical examples of
aerosols include the salt in sea spray, smoke from fires, smog, and dust. Aerosols can have negative
impacts on human health. Changes in air quality due to increased concentrations of aerosols can worsen
heart and lung diseases like asthma and bronchitis. Aerosols sometimes collect or get deposited in soil
and bodies of water, which can lead to acidification and extensive ecosystem damage. The presence of
aerosols in the atmosphere can also influence Earth's radiative balance and climate by scattering
incoming sunlight, destroying ozone in the stratosphere, and increasing cloud formation.
Geosphere includes soils that make up a thin layer which covers many of Earth's land surfaces. Although
soil only accounts for about 10% of Earth's surface, it is a precious natural resource that deeply affects
every other part of the ecosystem. Soils hold nutrients and water for plants and animals, filter and
cleanse water, and affect the amount of water that returns to the atmosphere to form rain. The foods
we eat and most of the materials we use for paper, buildings, and clothing are dependent on soils.
Understanding soil helps us figure out where to build our houses, roads, buildings, and playgrounds.
Important functions of soil include:
 Providing a nutrient-rich medium for agriculture
 Producing and storing gases such as carbon dioxide
 Storing heat and water
 Providing a home for billions of plants, animals and microorganisms
 Filtering water and wastes
 Providing raw source materials for construction, medicine, art, makeup, etc.
 Decomposing wastes
 Providing a snapshot of geologic, climatic, biological, and human history
Part B: Visit Your Local Study Site
Instructions: Look around your study site. What do you see, hear, smell? Describe and analyze what you
observe.
1. Where is your local study site in relation to your school? Is it in an urban, suburban, or rural
area?
2. Identify some examples of the four major components of the Earth system:
atmosphere (air, including wind, clouds, and precipitation):
hydrosphere (water):
geosphere or lithosphere (soil):
biosphere (living things):
3. Identify and record connections among the four components of the Earth system by: making
observations; recalling and integrating your existing knowledge about them; and speculating
carefully about the connections that might be taking place. Record your answers on the
Observations page of this Work Sheet. An excellent list of interconnections will be long; it will
involve all four of the components; it will be specific; it will bring in your knowledge from
previous studies in other classes as well as this one; and it will show that you are thinking deeply
and carefully about your study site.
Hints:
 Write down your observations as short phrases. Use verbs. Example: Leaves fall, decompose,
and become part of the soil.
 Write down as many interconnections as you can think of. Be as specific as you can. You can
even use general quantities, such as “a little,” “some,” or “a lot.”
 Work with other students if you wish, but before you add anything to your list, make sure you
understand it and agree with it!
 After you’ve made an initial list, look it over. Be sure you have described examples at the study
site for each of the four components. Is each of them acting upon each of the other three in at
least two or three ways?
Observations: Connections among Components
Atmosphere- Hydrosphere Connection
Atmosphere- Geosphere or Lithosphere Connection
Atmosphere- Biosphere Connection
Hydrosphere- Geosphere or Lithosphere Connection
Hydrosphere-Biosphere Connection
Biosphere- Geosphere or Lithosphere Connection
Part C: Predicting Consequences
All the components of your local study site are connected. Changes to the characteristics of one
component may have consequences for characteristics of other components. For example, if someone
planted a tree at your local study site, the ground beneath it would be shaded; the temperature of that
soil would decrease, and the soil moisture level would increase.
Work with a partner or small group to make predictions about ways that a change in the characteristics
of one component of your study site might affect the characteristics of other components. Be as specific
as you can.
Change: Rain Storm
 How would a change in water level affect plants and animals at the site?
 How might heavy precipitation affect soil moisture levels?
 How might the storm affect erosion?
 How might long periods with large amounts of cloud cover affect vegetation?
Stop and Think
Ask three of your own questions about changes, and predict the effects those changes would have on
other components of the study site. Your questions can address any aspects of the study site, not just
rainstorm events or climate. Ask yourself, "What if...?" and take it from there.
For example:
1. What if no birds flew into the study site?
2. What if twice as many birds flew into the study site as do now?
3. What if no people ever came again?
Stop and Think
1. Name something from each of the four spheres of the Earth system (geosphere or lithosphere,
hydrosphere, biosphere, atmosphere) that you interact with every day.
2: How do those things impact your life?
Claim (answer):
Evidence:
Reasoning (logic connecting evidence to claim):