Section: Energy in the Earth System
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SECTION: ENERGY IN THE EARTH SYSTEM
1. Different fields of Earth science, such as geology, oceanography, and meteorology, have been studied separately.
2. Scientists are combining knowledge of several sciences to study Earth as a system.
3. B
4. E
5. A
6. C
7. D
8. Systems vary in size from subatomic to the universe; all systems have boundaries.
9. The Earth system operates as a result of the combination of smaller, interrelated systems.
10. Energy can be transferred as heat, light, vibrations, or electromagnetic waves.
11. A system can be described by the way that matter and energy are transferred within the system or to and from other systems.
12. Answers may vary. Sample answer: A closed-system aquarium contains everything it needs for life — plants produce oxygen, aquatic animals feed on plants or each other, and animal wastes and organic matter nourish the plants. Only sunlight enters from the surroundings.
13. Answers may vary. Sample answer: A lake is an open system. Water molecules enter through rainfall and streams; and water exits through streams, evaporation, and absorption by the ground. Sunlight and air exchange heat with the lake. Wind’s energy is transferred as waves.
14. Matter exchange is limited. Energy enters the system as sunlight and exitsas heat. Only a small amount of dust and rock from space enters the system, and only a fraction of the hydrogen atoms in the atmosphere escape into space.
15. solid, liquid, gaseous
16. spheres
17. atmosphere 18. hydrosphere
19. geosphere
20. biosphere
21. The atmosphere provides air to breathe and it protects Earth from harmful radiation.
22. Fresh water can be found in lakes, rivers, streams, glaciers and polar ice sheets; and underground in soil and bedrock.
23. The geosphere includes all of the rock and soil on the surface of the continents and on the ocean floor, and the solid and molten interior of Earth.
24. The biosphere is composed of all forms of life in the geosphere, hydrosphere, and atmosphere. The biosphere also contains any organic matter that has not decomposed.
25. B
26. A
27. D
28. C
29. matter
30. energy
31. open systems
32. through chemical reactions, radioactive decay, the radiation of energy, and the growth and decay of organisms
33. radioactive decay and gravitational contraction
34. convection
35. sun
36. winds
37. gravitational energy 38. tides
39. A reservoir is a place where matter or energy is stored.
40. A cycle is a group of processes in which matter and energy repeatedly move through a series of reservoirs.
41. Nitrogen moves from air to soil, from soil to plants and animals, and back to air again. It is removed from the air by nitrogen-fixing bacteria, whichare vital to the growth of all plants. When animals eat plants, the nitrogen becomes part of their bodies. The compounds are returned to the soil by the decay of dead animals and in animals’ excretions. After nitrogen enters the soil, chemical processes release it back into the atmosphere.
42. In the short-term cycle, plants convert carbon dioxide into carbohydrates. Organisms heat the plants and obtain carbon, and then release it back into the air as carbon dioxide. Carbon is also released through wastes and decay of their remains.
43. In the long-term carbon cycle, carbon passes through all four spheres over a very long time period. Carbon is stored in the geosphere in buried plant or animal remains and in a type of rock called carbonate, which forms from shells and bones.
44. Phosphorus moves through all spheres except the atmosphere.
45. Phosphorus enters soil and water when rock breaks down and when phosphorus dissolves in water. Some organisms excrete phosphorus in their waste. Plants absorb the phosphorus from the soil, and animals absorb phosphorus from the plants. Phosphorus returns to the environment through decomposition.
46. Water changes from liquid to vapor through the energy transfers involved in evaporation and transpiration. During these processes, water absorbs heat and changes state. When the water loses energy, it condenses to form water droplets. 47. Transpiration is the release of water from plant leaves.
48. fossil fuels
49. carbon dioxide
50. agriculture