EarthIts Place in Our Solar System

Some 4.6 billion years ago, various planetesimals in our solar system gathered enough material together to form Earth and the other planets. Scientists think that this early Earth was probably cool, of generally uniform composition and density throughout, and composed mostly of silicates, compounds consisting of silicon and oxygen, iron and magnesium oxides, and smaller amounts of all the other chemical elements.

Subsequently, when the combination of meteorite impacts, gravitational compression, and heat from radioactive decay increased the temperature of Earth enough to melt iron and nickel, this homogeneous composition disappeared and was replaced by a series of concentric layers of differing composition and density, resulting in a differentiated planet

 This differentiation into a layered planet is probably the most signicant event in Earths history. Not only did it lead to the formation of a crust and eventually continents, but it also was probably responsible for the emission of gases from the interior that eventually led to the formation of the oceans and atmosphere.

 This orderly division results from density differences between the layers as a function of variations in composition, temperature, and pressure. The core has a calculated density of 1013 grams per cubic centimeter (g/cm3) and occupies about 16% of Earths total volume. Seismic (earthquake) data ndicate that the core consists of a small, solid inner region and a larger, apparently liquid, outer portion. Both are thought to consist mostly of iron and a small amount of nickel. The mantle surrounds the core and comprises about 83% of Earths volume. It is less dense than the core (3.35.7 g/cm3)and is thought to be composed mostly of peridotite, a dark, dense igneous rock containing abundant iron and magnesium.

 The mantle can be divided into three distinct zones based on physical characteristics. The lower mantle is solid and forms most of the volume of Earths interior. The asthenosphere surrounds the lower mantle. It has the same composition as the lower mantle, but behaves plastically and ows slowly. Partial melting within the asthenosphere generates magma (molten material), some of which rises to the surface because it is less dense than the rock from which it was derived. The upper mantle surrounds the asthenosphere. The solid upper mantle and the overlying crust constitute the lithosphere, which is broken into numerous individual pieces called plates that move over the asthenosphere, partially as a result of underlying convection cells.

 Interactions of these plates are responsible for such phenom-ena as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and the formation of mountain ranges and ocean basins.

 The crust, Earths outermost layer, consists of two types. Continental crust is thick (2090 km), has an average density of 2.7 g/cm3, and contains considerable silicon and aluminum. Oceanic crust is thin (510 km), denser than continental crust (3.0 g/cm3), and is composed of the dark igneous rocks basalt and gabbro.

Earths Systems
Scientists who study Earth have identified four main Earth systems: the geosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere. Each system is unique, yet each interacts with the others.

 Geosphere. The area from the surface of Earth down to its center is called the geosphere. The geosphere is divided into three main parts: the crust, mantle, and core. The rigid outer shell of Earth is called the crust. There are two kinds of crustcontinental crust and oceanic crust. Just below the crust is Earths mantle. The mantle differs from the crust both in composition and behavior. The mantle ranges in temperature from 100C to 4000C much warmer than the temperatures found in Earths crust. Below the mantle is Earths core. Atmosphere. The blanket of gases that surrounds our planet is called the atmosphere. Earths atmosphere contains about 78 percent nitrogen and 21 percent oxygen. The remaining 1 percent of gases in the atmosphere include water vapor, argon, carbon dioxide, and other trace gases. Earths atmosphere provides oxygen for living things, protects Earths inhabitants from harmful radiation from the Sun, and helps to keep the planet at a temperature suitable for life.

 Hydrosphere. All the water on Earth, including the water in the atmosphere, makes up the hydrosphere. About 97 percent of Earths water exists as salt water, while the remaining 3 percent is freshwater contained in glaciers, lakes and rivers, and beneath Earths surface as groundwater. Only a fraction of Earths total amount of freshwater is in lakes and rivers. Biosphere. The biosphere includes all organisms on Earth as well as the environments in which they live. Most organisms live within a few meters of Earths surface, but some exist deep beneath the oceans surface, and others live high atop Earths mountains. All of Earths life-forms require interaction with at least one of the other systems for their survival.

Earths Composition
Matter. Atoms are the basic building blocks of all matter. Atoms. Matter is anything that has volume and mass. Everything in the physical world that surrounds you is composed of matter. On Earth, matter usually occurs as a solid, a liquid, or a gas. All matter is made of substances called elements. An element is a substance that cannot be broken down into simpler substances by physical or chemical means. For example, gold is still gold whether it is a gold brick, coins, or a statue.

What elements are most abundant?

Astronomers have identified the two most abundant elements in the universe as hydrogen and helium. All other elements account for less than 1 percent of all atoms in the universe, as shown in the figure

 Analyses of the composition of rocks and minerals on Earth indicate that the percentages of elements in Earths crust differ from the percentages in the universe. As shown in the figure, 98.5 percent of Earths crust is made up of only eight elements. Two of these elements, oxygen and silicon, account for almost 75 percent of the crusts composition. This means that most of the rocks and minerals on Earths crust contain oxygen and silicon.