Earth Systems

4. the biosphere includes plants and animals, microscopic organisms such as
8. rocks contain silica- silicon and oxygen
11. made of plastic-like rock
12. this is the only layer of the geosphere from which we can obtain samples
14. describes all the living things on Earth
15. this layer contains more than 80% of all gas found in the atmosphere
17. causes winds in the Northern hemisphere to spin clockwise and counterclockwise in the Southern hemisphere
19. made of molten iron and nickel
20. made of hot, hard and strong plastic-like rock, the lower mantle.
22. the total mass of that element compared to the mass of other elements
23. water without salt in it
24. is a mineral that makes up the majority of rocks in the crust
25. the process of water seeping into the ground
26. the international space station orbits in this layer of the atmosphere
27. describes all the water on Earth

1. When a tectonic plate covered in oceanic crust converges or collides with a tectonic plate covered in continental crust, the oceanic plate sinks or _____ below the continental plate because it’s denser.
2. the most abundant element in the atmosphere
3. water evaporates out of the leaves through the small openings.
5. the upper part of the mantle. It is made of soft, weak and viscous rock
6. describes all the rocks found on and in Earth’s ground
7. the most abundant element on Earth
9. describes the air on Earth. It includes the gases that surround Earth
10. made of solid iron and nickel
13. crust is thick and made of granite. It is 30 to 60 km thick.
16. the total volume of that element compared to the volume of other elements
18. made of solid, cool and rigid rock, tectonic plates
19. crust is very thin and dense. It is 5 to 8 km thick.
21. 97% of all water on earth is ____