System Earth
Upside down or right side up? We have asked you to look at our
planet Earth from a different perspective and to think of it as a system.
And we have learned how to analyze systems to better understand
them with a systems analysis model like “my back yard”. We have also
asked you to analyze systems by exploring the relationships between the
living and non-living parts, as well how matter cycles and energy flows through systems.
Now we ask that you consider Earth as a system of 5 interconnected spheres as in the
image to the right. How are these spheres connected? How do they affect each other?
Systems: Systems are made up of parts that interact. Like we learned from system
models in class (My Back Yard, Biosphere 2,
and Biosphere 8) these interactions or
processes influence different parts of
the system. For example, the
lithosphere of the Earth continually
generates new ocean sea floor at
ridges and destroys old sea floor at
trenches. (1) What effects might these
tectonic processes cause on the
hydrosphere? Biosphere?
Atmosphere?
Energy & Matter: Just like in your
Biosphere 8 model, Earth processes
are the result of energy flowing and matter cycling within and
among the planet’s systems. This energy is derived from the
sun and Earth’s hot interior. The energy that flows and matter
that cycles produce chemical and physical changes in Earth’s
materials and living organisms. In your Biosphere 8 model,
some of the energy entering the jar leaves the system. We
say it is “energetically open, materially closed” just like the
Earth. (2) What factors might change the amount of energy
that leaves the Earth? How might this affect other parts of
Earth’s spheres?
Scale & Size: The planet’s systems interact over scales that
range from microscopic to global in size, and they operate over
fractions of a second to billions of years. For example
investigations of rocks and fossils tell us that Earth’s
plates have moved great distances, collided, and
spread apart and continue to do so today.
(3) How might these interactions have
shaped Earth’s history and determine its
future?
Hydrosphere: Water continually cycles
among land, ocean, and atmosphere via
transpiration, evaporation, condensation
and crystallization, and precipitation, as
well as downhill flows on land. The
complex patterns of the changes and the
movement of water in the atmosphere,
determined by winds, landforms, and
ocean temperatures and currents, are major determinants of local weather patterns. (4) What effects might these
processes have on the hydrosphere? Biosphere? Lithosphere?
Global movements of water and its changes
in form are propelled by sunlight and gravity.
Variations in density due to variations in
temperature and salinity drive a global
pattern of interconnected ocean currents.
Water’s movements—both on the land and
underground—cause weathering and
erosion, which change the land’s surface
features. (5)What effects might these
processes have on the lithosphere?
Biosphere? Atmosphere?
Weather and Climate Weather and climate are influenced by interactions involving sunlight, the ocean, the
atmosphere, ice, landforms, and living things. These interactions vary with latitude, altitude, and local and regional
geography, all of which can affect oceanic and atmospheric flow patterns.
Because these patterns are so
complex, weather can only be
predicted probabilistically.
The ocean exerts a major influence on
weather and climate by absorbing
energy from the sun, releasing it over
time, and globally redistributing it
through ocean currents. (6) How does la Nina and El Nino influence the weather patterns? How might these
currents influence ecosystems? Refer to the image to left…
Earth and Humans
Human activities have significantly altered the biosphere, sometimes damaging or destroying natural habitats and
causing the extinction of other species. But changes to Earth’s environments can have different impacts (negative
and positive) for different living things.
Typically as human populations and per-capita
consumption of natural resources increase, so do the
negative impacts on Earth unless the activities and
technologies involved are engineered otherwise. (7)
What implications might the two different sets of data
from this graph have on the Earth system?
Global Climate Change
Human activities, such as the release of greenhouse
gases from burning fossil fuels, are major factors in
the current rise in Earth’s mean surface temperature
(global warming). Reducing the level of climate
change and reducing human vulnerability to whatever
climate
changes do occur depend on the understanding of climate science,
engineering capabilities, and other kinds of knowledge, such as
understanding of human behavior and on applying that knowledge
wisely in decisions and activities. (8) Explore a Drought Event in the
image on the right. What implications does drought have on the
system Earth? Describe ways drought may create certain issues or
impact humans.