Earth's Spheres Overview

Earth's Spheres

• Earth is composed of four main spheres: biosphere, lithosphere, hydrosphere, and atmosphere.
• The biosphere encompasses all living organisms on Earth.
• The lithosphere is the solid, rocky part of Earth's surface, extending from the crust to the upper mantle.
• The hydrosphere consists of all water on Earth, including oceans, lakes, rivers, and groundwater.
• The atmosphere is the layer of gases surrounding Earth.

Biosphere

• The biosphere is the sphere of life on Earth.
• The word "biosphere" means "life sphere".
• The biosphere includes all living things, including plants and animals, from the highest mountains to the ocean floor.
• The biosphere interacts with all the other spheres.

Lithosphere

• The lithosphere is the hard, rocky outer layer of Earth.
• The lithosphere includes the crust and upper mantle.
• The lithosphere is involved in the formation of mountains and volcanoes.
• Organisms live on the lithosphere, including plants, animals and microscopic creatures.

Hydrosphere

• The hydrosphere is the sphere of water on Earth.
• It contains all water in oceans, lakes, rivers, groundwater etc.
• The hydrosphere is part of the biosphere cycle, since water is essential to life.

Atmosphere

• The atmosphere is the gaseous layer surrounding Earth.
• It is made up of various gases like oxygen, nitrogen, and carbon dioxide that support life.
• It is also involved in weather patterns and plays a protective role against harmful solar radiation.