Team A: Assignment
Intro to Earth Science Jigsaw
Read the following information below carefully. You are responsible for teaching this information to the rest of your team. Any terms that are found in bold letters are terms that your team should be responsible for. Record any information you need on your individual note sheet. You can use this to report back to your group later on in the period.
Geology
Earth Science is an applied science which has many subdivisions. Geology is the study of the solid Earth. One obvious observation is that the surface of the Earth is constantly changing.
Our understanding of the Earth has also changed dramatically within the last 30 years.
Geologists now believe that different parts of the Earth’s crust are moving relative to each other. These movements cause earthquakes and volcanoes to form. The modern theory that explains these movements is called Plate Tectonics. We will use this theory to understand more about what causes changes on the Earth’s surface.
Geologists are scientists who study geology, and work in many different fields. Some geologists study fossils and life from the past. These scientists are called paleontologists.
Recently, they have found evidence that simple life may have existed on the planet Mars from evidence found on a meteorite. Some geologists study rocks and minerals which make up the Earth’s crust. Rocks and minerals contain many useful materials as well as information about what has shaped the Earth in the past.
Other geologists study earthquakes and how they affect the Earth. These scientists are called seismologists. Seismology gives us a clue to what the inside of the Earth is like. We have discovered that the earth is composed or made of many layers. The solid rocky portion of the Earth we live on is called the crust. There are two main types of crust, continental and oceanic.
The layer below the crust is called the mantle. The mantle is also made of rock but it is much higher in density than the crust. Movement of the rocks within the upper layer of the mantle may cause different parts of the crust to move. The core is the innermost portion of the Earth. It is composed of the metals, iron and nickel. The outer core is actually thought to be a liquid.
Most of the natural resources we use are found within the Earth. Geologists are
responsible for helping to find and use those resources. It is important to realize that many of our resources are non-renewable. That means they cannot be regenerated in a short period of time. Most of our energy comes from the burning of fossil fuels, coal, oil and natural gas. So far, we have used 50% of the oil that has been found on the planet.
The study of geology is important since it helps us to understand the world around us.
The more we know about our natural world the better we can use and protect it.
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Team B: Assignment
Intro to Earth Science Jigsaw
Read the following information below carefully. You are responsible for teaching this information to the rest of your team. Any terms that are found in bold letters are terms that your team should be responsible for. Record any information you need on your individual note sheet. You can use this to report back to your group later on in the period.
Astronomy
Earth Science is an applied science which has many subdivisions. Astronomy is the study of the motions of the planet Earth and other objects in space. For centuries we have been trying to understand the motions of the stars and planets. Originally, people felt the Earth was the center of the universe and all heavenly bodies, like the sun, moon, and the stars, moved around it. This model of the universe is known as the geocentric model. For centuries this was a commonly held belief. Unfortunately, this model did not accurately predict the motion of the stars and the planets.
Our modern picture of the universe is called the heliocentric model. We know that the Sun is actually the center of the solar system. The planets move around the sun in orbits. All planets have two types of motions. These motions determine the length of different time
periods. Rotation is the spinning motion on an axis. Rotation determines the length of the day for a planet. The Earth makes on complete rotation every 24 hours. Revolution is the orbiting motion around the sun. The Earth completes one revolution in 365 ¼ days. Every four years we get a leap year due to the extra ¼ day each year. The motions of the Earth determine how much energy is received from the sun. Our seasons are caused by how the Earth is tilted on its axis as it orbits the sun.
The moon is a natural satellite of the Earth. This means that the moon orbits the Earth.
There are many observations that can be made about the moon. The phases of the moon are the changing appearance of the moon. The complete cycle of phases takes about one month. The moon is also responsible for tides on the Earth. Occasionally, the position of the Earth, Moon, and Sun can cause a shadow to fall on another celestial object. These are called eclipses. There are two main types of eclipses. Solar eclipses occur when the shadow of the moon falls on the Earth’s surface. During a solar eclipse the sun will be completely obscured and it will get dark on the Earth’s surface. Solar eclipses only last for a few minutes. A lunar eclipse occurs when the shadow of the Earth falls on the Moon’s surface. Lunar eclipses can only happen during the full moon phase and last for several hours.
Our solar system is only a small part of a much larger galaxy. The Milky Way galaxy is a collection of billions of stars. It is a spiral galaxy with a dense core of stars at the center. Our sun is just one of those billions of stars, and it is found on the outer edge of the galaxy.
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Astronomers are beginning to find evidence of other planets around stars. Who knows what else we will find if we continue to study the universe around us?
Team C: Assignment
Intro to Earth Science Jigsaw
Read the following information below carefully. You are responsible for teaching this information to the rest of your team. Any terms that are found in bold letters are terms that your team should be responsible for. Record any information you need on your individual note sheet. You can use this to report back to your group later on in the period.
Meteorology
Earth Science is an applied science which has many subdivisions. Meteorology is the study of the changing conditions of the atmosphere. The atmosphere is the shell of gases which surrounds the planet. It is composed mainly of the gases nitrogen and oxygen. All the other gases, like carbon dioxide, water vapor, and argon, only make up one percent of the overall atmosphere. Weather is the changing conditions of the atmosphere at one location at one time. Weather plays an important role in our lives. Meteorologists attempt to predict the weather, but as you know, these predictions may not be very accurate. We will never be able to accurately predict the weather because it is chaotic. A system is chaotic if you can start with identical conditions but still end up with different results. Still, it is essential for our lives to try to predict the weather to the best of our abilities.
Meteorologists have discovered that the atmosphere is broken into many layers. The lowest layer of the atmosphere is called the troposphere. This is the only layer that has significant water vapor in it. All of our weather occurs within the troposphere. The stratosphere is the layer above the troposphere. This part of the atmosphere contains the ozone layer. The ozone layer protects life on Earth by absorbing harmful ultraviolet radiation from the sun. Unfortunately, chemicals which man has introduced into the atmosphere appear to be depleting the amount of ozone found in the
stratosphere. The layers above the stratosphere are called the mesosphere and the thermosphere.
Climate is the study of the average conditions of the atmosphere for a large area for an extended time period. The average temperature and amount of rainfall are usually used to determine the climate of a region. While weather is constantly changing, climate can remain stable for long periods of time.
Many factors affect the climate of an area. The most important climate factor is the latitude of the location. The closer the location is to the equator, the higher the average temperature normally is.
Other factors which can change or modify the climate are altitude, mountain ranges, nearness to the ocean, and ocean currents. Together all of these factors determine the climate of a region.
Recently, scientists have been concerned about changes in the atmosphere due to man’s activities. Global warming may be occurring because of our addition of carbon dioxide gas to the atmosphere. An increase in carbon dioxide can cause an increase in the greenhouse effect. The greenhouse effect occurs when additional heat is absorbed by the atmosphere. Ozone depletion is also an atmospheric problem caused by our actions. Ozone depletion is due mainly to the addition of chlorofluorocarbons (CFC’s) to the air. These manmade chemicals cause a breakdown of the ozone which is found in the stratosphere. This can lead to an increased risk of sunburn and skin cancer for humans on Earth.
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Team D: Assignment
Intro to Earth Science Jigsaw
Read the following information below carefully. You are responsible for teaching this information to the rest of your team. Any terms that are found in bold letters are terms that your team should be responsible for.
Record any information you need on your individual note sheet. You can use this to report back to your group later in the period.
Oceanography
Earth science is an applied science which has many subdivisions. Oceanography is the study of the Earth’s oceans. Over 70 percent of the Earth’s surface is covered by water. This water has an important influence on the processes that shape and change the planet. The
hydrosphere is considered to be all of the water that is found on the planet. Most of this water is found in the oceans. Only 2 percent of the water on the planet is fresh. Most of the fresh water on the planet is actually found frozen in the ice caps which cover Antarctica and the North Pole region.
Our knowledge of the ocean depths was very limited until we developed technology that allows us to view the bottom of the ocean floor. We can now map and probe the bottom of the oceans using sonar and even satellite images. We have found many interesting features that were completely unknown for centuries. The longest mountain chains on the planet are actually found on the bottom of the ocean floor. These mountain chains, called mid-ocean ridges, are made of volcanoes. At the mid-ocean ridge, two pieces or plates of the crust are moving apart.
New ocean floor forms at a ridge. Trenches are the deepest parts of the ocean. Trenches form where two parts of the earth are colliding or converging. At a trench, a piece of the ocean floor is being pulled down into the earth. Volcanic island arcs like Japan or volcanic mountain ranges like the Andes are found next to trenches.
Movement of water in the oceans can have a dramatic effect on the climate of different areas. Ocean currents are sustained movements of either cold or warm ocean water. These currents can even change the water patterns for the entire planet. The Gulf Stream is a warm ocean current which flows from the Gulf of Mexico all the way across the Atlantic Ocean. This current keeps many European nations warmer because of its influence. An ocean current in the Pacific Ocean called El Nino seems to have a tremendous impact on global weather patterns.
El Nino is a warm ocean current that occurs every 4 to 7 years. During an El Nino event some areas have increased rainfall and flooding while other areas can experience droughts.
The oceans contain a great deal of material other than water. A large amount of potential resources are carried in solution. The dissolved ions that are found in salt water are said to be in solution. When sea water evaporates these materials will crystallize and form rocks. Rocks that form from the evaporation of seawater are called evaporites. Rocks like limestone,
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gypsum, and halite are examples of materials that form in this way. They are important resources that we use in our modern societies.
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Vocabulary: Intro to Earth Science Jigsaw
Vocabulary Term Definition
