ELEC 223

• Earth - the third planet from the Sun and the fifth largest planet in the solar system in terms of size and mass.
• Oblate Spheroid - acceptable shape of earth
• Nebular Hypothesis - explains the process which involves the gradual accretion of solid particles into planetesimals and protoplanets
• System - a group of things that regularly interact or are interdependent and that together form a unified whole.
• Earth System - complex and interconnected web of physical, chemical, biological, and human processes that operate on and within the Earth.
• Energy - enables systems to change and interact
• Matter - is all physical substances, like energy, matter stored in systems
• Open systems - exchange both matter and energy with their surroundings
• Closed System - exchange energy with their surroundings but do not exchange matter
• Geosphere - a very dynamic and open system
• Core - the innermost part of our planet
• Iron and Nickel - primary elements of core
• Outer Core - where geodynamic effect happen
• Geodynamic Effect - the motion of molten metal that is believed to generate the earth's magnetic field.
• Mantle - the thickest layer of the Earth
• Upper Mantle - the part where mantle convection happened
• Mantle Convection- the movement of semi-solid rock in Earth's mantle due to heat from the core
• Crust - the outermost layer of the Earth
• Continental Crust -  type of crust that forms the continents and consists of granitic rocks (thicker than oceanic crust)
• Oceanic Crust - crust that forms the ocean basins and is composed mainly of basaltic rocks
• Lithosphere - a part of geosphere which includes the crust and top part of the mantle
• Hydrosphere - The water in the Earth's oceans, lakes, rivers, groundwater, and permanent ice accumulation
• Groundwater - a water stored beneath the Earth's surface in porous rock formations
• Water Cycle - describes the continuous movement of water on, above, and below the Earth's surface. 
• Evaporation - involves the conversion of liquid water into  water vapor.
• Condensation -  the process by which a water vapor changes into liquid water
• Forms of precipitation - rain, snow, sleet, and hail
• Runoff - the process by which the water flows over the surface of the ground
• Infiltration - the movement of water through soil and rock layers
• Transpiration - the process by which water returns to the atmosphere from plants
• Atmosphere - refers to all gases that envelops or surrounds the earth
• Troposphere - where we live, and where most weather phenomena occur
• Stratosphere - contains ozone layer
• Mesosphere - responsible for protecting the earth's surface from most asteroids.
• Thermosphere - the ionosphere, where auroras occur
• Cryosphere - The part of the Earth that is covered by ice and snow.
• Biosphere - the part of earth where life and past life exists
• The term Biosphere was coined by geologist Eduard Suess in 1875
• Biodiversity - a term to describe the variety of life in the biosphere
• Sun - primary source of energy that drives the water cycle