ELS_LC_The Universe and Solar System; Earth Systems.docx.pdf

ATENEO DE DAVAO UNIVERSITY Km 7 Central Park Blvd, Talomo, 8016 Davao City, Philippines Tel No. +63 (82) 221.2411 local 8608...

ATENEO DE DAVAO UNIVERSITY Km 7 Central Park Blvd, Talomo, 8016 Davao City, Philippines Tel No. +63 (82) 221.2411 local 8608 E-Mail: [email protected] * www.addu.edu.ph In Consortium with Ateneo de Zamboanga University and Xavier University SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL – BIOLOGY AND EARTH & LIFE SCIENCE CLUSTER TOPIC 1 LEARNING CONTENT THE UNIVERSE AND SOLAR SYSTEM; EARTH SYSTEMS ce Theories on the Origin of the Universe: en a. Genesis creation - a creation myth of both Judaism and Christianity. In Genesis 1:1–2:3 Elohim, the Hebrew generic plural word for God, creates the heavens and the earth in six (6) days, starting with the light on the first ci day and ending with mankind on the sixth, then rests on, blesses and S sanctifies the seventh. fe b. Brahmanda (Cosmic Egg) Universe - The Hindu Rigveda, written in India around the 15th - 12th Century B.C., describes a cyclical or oscillating Li universe in which a “cosmic egg”, or Brahmanda. It contains the whole universe (including the Sun, Moon, planets, and all of space) expanding out of & a single concentrated point called a Bindu before subsequently collapsing again. The universe cycles infinitely between expansion and total collapse. th c. Atomist Universe - Later in the 5th Century B.C., the Greek ar philosophers Leucippus and Democritus founded the school of Atomism, E which held that the universe was composed of very small, indivisible, and indestructible building blocks known as atoms (from the Greek “atomos”, S meaning “uncuttable”). All of the reality and all the objects in the universe are H composed of different arrangements of these eternal atoms and an infinite void, in which they form different combinations and shapes. -S d. Organismic View - According to the “organismic” view, the structures U that make up the universe, galaxies, black holes, quasars, stars, nebulae, dD planets and us included, should be considered as the tissue of a living giant, something as the parts of the body of the universe. What happens in one place affects what happens elsewhere. A e. Steady State Universe - This non-standard cosmology (i.e. opposed to the standard Big Bang model) has occurred in various versions since the scientific community generally adopted the Big Bang theory. The English astronomer Fred Hoyle and Austrians Thomas Gold and Hermann Bondi proposed a popular variant of the steady-state universe in 1948. It predicted a universe that expanded but did not change its density, with matter inserted into the universe as it expanded to maintain a constant density.  ATENEO DE DAVAO UNIVERSITY Km 7 Central Park Blvd, Talomo, 8016 Davao City, Philippines Tel No. +63 (82) 221.2411 local 8608 E-Mail: [email protected] * www.addu.edu.ph In Consortium with Ateneo de Zamboanga University and Xavier University SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL – BIOLOGY AND EARTH & LIFE SCIENCE CLUSTER ce en ci f. Modified Steady-State Infinite Universe- is an attempt to address some of the observed discrepancies with the original Steady-state theory. S Proposed in the late 1990s by Fred Hoyle, Jayant Narlikar, and Geoffrey Burbidge, this model retains the idea of a steady-state universe but fe incorporates elements from the Big Bang theory to account for specific observational evidence. Li Key features of the Modified Steady-state theory: & - The universe is still considered to be eternal and always in a th steady-state. ar - The continuous creation of matter proposed in the original Steady-state theory is replaced by a process of "tired light." This means that photons E lose energy as they travel through space, which affects the redshift of distant objects without requiring the expansion of the universe. S - The Modified Steady-state theory attempts to explain the observed H redshift of distant galaxies without invoking the expansion of space. -S g. Big Bang Model of the Universe - some versions of the Big Bang theory have generally been the mainstream scientific view. The theory describes the U universe as originating in an infinitely tiny, infinitely dense point (or singularity) dD between 13 and 14 billion years ago, from where it has been expanding ever since. The essential statement of the theory is usually attributed to the Belgian Roman Catholic priest and physicist Georges Lemaitre in 1927 (even before A Hubble’s corroborating evidence), although a similar theory had been proposed, although not pursued, in 1922 by the Russian Alexander Friedmann in 1922.  ATENEO DE DAVAO UNIVERSITY Km 7 Central Park Blvd, Talomo, 8016 Davao City, Philippines Tel No. +63 (82) 221.2411 local 8608 E-Mail: [email protected] * www.addu.edu.ph In Consortium with Ateneo de Zamboanga University and Xavier University SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL – BIOLOGY AND EARTH & LIFE SCIENCE CLUSTER ce en h. Cosmic Inflationary Universe- proposed in 1980 by Allan Guth, Andreas Albrecht, Paul Steinhardt, Andre Linde. It is a concept in modern cosmology ci that addresses some of the fundamental questions about the origin and early S evolution of the universe. It proposes that the universe underwent a rapid and exponential expansion during the first few fractions of a second after the Big fe Bang. This period of rapid expansion is believed to have played a crucial role in shaping the universe's large-scale structure as we observe it today. Li & th ar E S Models of the Solar System H -S 1. Geocentric Model - Ptolemy (second century, A.D.), Egyptian: the geocentric model with stars and planets on fixed spheres around the earth. U dD A  ATENEO DE DAVAO UNIVERSITY Km 7 Central Park Blvd, Talomo, 8016 Davao City, Philippines Tel No. +63 (82) 221.2411 local 8608 E-Mail: [email protected] * www.addu.edu.ph In Consortium with Ateneo de Zamboanga University and Xavier University SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL – BIOLOGY AND EARTH & LIFE SCIENCE CLUSTER ce en ci S fe Li 2. Heliocentric Model - Heliocentric is the astronomical model in which the & Earth and planets revolve around the Sun at the center of the Universe. th ar E S H -S U dD A Copernicus (1543) - revived the heliocentric model of the solar system and proposed that earth was one of several planets orbiting the sun. Galileo (1609) - constructed the first astronomical telescope; gathered evidence that supported the Copernican model. Hypotheses on the origin of the solar system:  ATENEO DE DAVAO UNIVERSITY Km 7 Central Park Blvd, Talomo, 8016 Davao City, Philippines Tel No. +63 (82) 221.2411 local 8608 E-Mail: [email protected] * www.addu.edu.ph In Consortium with Ateneo de Zamboanga University and Xavier University SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL – BIOLOGY AND EARTH & LIFE SCIENCE CLUSTER a. Nebular Hypothesis: The nebular hypothesis is a widely accepted model that explains the formation and evolution of the solar system. According to this hypothesis, the solar system formed from a spinning cloud of dust made of mostly light elements, called a nebula, which flattened into a protoplanetary disk. The spinning nebula collected the vast majority of material in its center, which is why the sun accounts for over 99% of the mass ce in our solar system. The planets formed from the remaining material in the en disk, which clumped together to form planetesimals, and eventually, planets. The nebular hypothesis also explains the nearly circular and coplanar orbits of ci the planets and their motion in the same direction as the Sun's rotation. The process of planetary system formation is now thought to be at work S throughout the universe. fe b. Planetesimal Theory: put forth by Viktor Safonov in 1941, explains planet formation in the early solar system from the accretion of small bodies, Li growing in size as gravity attracted more and more objects. As the small & bodies orbit, their gravity is very weak, and they must rely on non-gravitational forces to stay together, such as radiation pressure and the emission of th thermal photons. ar C. Tidal Hypothesis: The Jeans-Jeffrey’s tidal hypothesis, championed E by James Jeans and Harold Jeffrey has explained the origin of the solar system because of a close encounter between the Sun and a second star. S H D. Protoplanet Hypothesis: suggests that about 5 billion years ago a great cloud of gas and dust rotated slowly in space. The cloud was at least -S 10 billion kilometers in diameter. As time passed, the cloud shrank under the pull of its gravitation or was made to collapse by the explosion of a passing U star. dD EARTH SYSTEMS A A system is defined as a collection of interrelated parts forming a synergistic whole that jointly perform functions that each part by itself cannot perform. The parts of the systems, also called components or elements, can be things, or people, or both. Actions of the system elements including interactions between them constitute the processes of the system. Depending on its relationship with the environment, systems are divided in two broad categories - open systems and closed systems. An open system interacts with its environment while a closed system does not. In the practical world, there are no systems that are absolutely closed. Systems that have relatively limited interaction with its environment are, therefore, considered  ATENEO DE DAVAO UNIVERSITY Km 7 Central Park Blvd, Talomo, 8016 Davao City, Philippines Tel No. +63 (82) 221.2411 local 8608 E-Mail: [email protected] * www.addu.edu.ph In Consortium with Ateneo de Zamboanga University and Xavier University SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL – BIOLOGY AND EARTH & LIFE SCIENCE CLUSTER closed systems while those with substantial interaction are considered open systems. Everything in Earth's system can be placed into one of four major subsystems: land, water, living things, or air. These four subsystems are called "spheres." Specifically, they are the "lithosphere" (land), "hydrosphere" ce (water), "biosphere" (living things), and "atmosphere" (air). Each of these four spheres can be further divided into sub-spheres. To keep things simple in this en module, there will be no distinction among the sub-spheres of any of the four major spheres. ci S 1. Atmosphere The atmosphere contains all the air in Earth's system. It extends from less fe than 1 m below the planet's surface to more than 10,000 km above the planet's surface. The upper portion of the atmosphere protects the Li organisms of the biosphere from the sun's ultraviolet radiation. It also absorbs and emits heat. When air temperature in the lower portion of this & sphere changes, weather occurs. As air in the lower atmosphere is heated or cooled, it moves around the planet. The result can be as simple as a th breeze or as complex as a tornado. ar The atmosphere is divided into five layers. It is thickest near the surface and thins out with height until it eventually merges with space. E 1) The troposphere is the first layer above the surface and contains half of the Earth's atmosphere. Weather occurs in this layer. S 2) Many jet aircrafts fly in the stratosphere because it is very stable. H Also, the ozone layer absorbs harmful rays from the Sun. 3) Meteors or rock fragments burn up in the mesosphere. -S 4) The thermosphere is a layer with auroras. It is also where the space shuttle orbits. U 5) The atmosphere merges into space in the extremely thin exosphere. dD This is the upper limit of our atmosphere. 1. Hydrosphere A The hydrosphere contains all the solid, liquid, and gaseous water of the planet. It ranges from 10 to 20 kilometers in thickness. The hydrosphere extends from Earth's surface downward several kilometers into the lithosphere and upward about 12 kilometers into the atmosphere. A small portion of the water in the hydrosphere is fresh (non-salty). This water flows as precipitation from the atmosphere down to Earth's surface, as rivers and streams along Earth's surface, and as groundwater beneath Earth's surface. Most of Earth's fresh water, however, is frozen.  ATENEO DE DAVAO UNIVERSITY Km 7 Central Park Blvd, Talomo, 8016 Davao City, Philippines Tel No. +63 (82) 221.2411 local 8608 E-Mail: [email protected] * www.addu.edu.ph In Consortium with Ateneo de Zamboanga University and Xavier University SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL – BIOLOGY AND EARTH & LIFE SCIENCE CLUSTER Ninety-seven percent of Earth's water is salty. The salty water collects in deep valleys along Earth's surface. These large collections of salty water are referred to as oceans. The image above depicts the different temperatures one would find on oceans' surfaces. Water near the poles is very cold (shown in dark purple), while water near the equator is very warm (shown in light blue). The differences in temperature cause water to ce change physical states. Extremely low temperatures like those found at the poles cause water to freeze into a solid such as a polar icecap, a en glacier, or an iceberg. Extremely high temperatures like those found at the equator cause water to evaporate into a gas. ci 2. Biosphere S The biosphere contains all the planet's living things. This sphere includes all of the microorganisms, plants, and animals of Earth. fe Within the biosphere, living things form ecological communities based on Li the physical surroundings of an area. These communities are referred to as biomes. Deserts, grasslands, and tropical rainforests are three of the & many types of biomes that exist within the biosphere. th It is impossible to detect from space each individual organism within the ar biosphere. However, biomes can be seen from space. For example, the image above distinguishes between lands covered with plants (shown in E shades of green) and those that are not (shown in brown). S 3. Lithosphere H The lithosphere contains all of the cold, hard solid land of the planet's crust (surface), the semi-solid land underneath the crust, and the liquid -S land near the center of the planet. *The surface of the lithosphere is very uneven (see image at right). There are high mountain ranges like the U Rockies and Andes (shown in red), huge plains or flat areas like those in dD Texas, Iowa, and Brazil (shown in green), and deep valleys along the ocean floor (shown in blue). A The solid, semi-solid, and liquid land of the lithosphere form layers that are physically and chemically different. If someone were to cut through Earth to its center, these layers would be revealed like the layers of an onion (see image above). The outermost layer of the lithosphere consists of loose soil rich in nutrients, oxygen, and silicon. Beneath that layer lies a very thin, solid crust of oxygen and silicon. Next is a thick, semi-solid mantle of oxygen, silicon, iron, and magnesium. Below that is a liquid outer core of nickel and iron. At the center of Earth is a solid inner core of nickel and iron.  ATENEO DE DAVAO UNIVERSITY Km 7 Central Park Blvd, Talomo, 8016 Davao City, Philippines Tel No. +63 (82) 221.2411 local 8608 E-Mail: [email protected] * www.addu.edu.ph In Consortium with Ateneo de Zamboanga University and Xavier University SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL – BIOLOGY AND EARTH & LIFE SCIENCE CLUSTER Layers of the Earth Three centuries ago, the English scientist Isaac Newton calculated, from his studies of planets and the force of gravity, that the average density of the Earth is twice that of surface rocks and therefore that the Earth's interior must be composed of much denser material. Our knowledge of what's inside the Earth has improved immensely since ce Newton's time, but his estimate of the density remains essentially unchanged. Our current information comes from studies of the paths and characteristics of earthquake waves traveling through the Earth, as well as from laboratory experiments on surface en minerals and rocks at high pressure and temperature. Other important data on the Earth's interior come from geological observation of surface rocks and studies of the ci Earth's motions in the Solar System, its gravity and magnetic fields, and the flow of heat S from inside the Earth. fe The planet Earth is made up of three main shells: the very thin, brittle crust, the mantle, and the core; the mantle and core are each divided into two parts. All parts are drawn to Li scale on the cover of this publication, and a table at the end lists the thicknesses of the parts. Although the core and mantle are about equal in thickness, the core actually & forms only 15 percent of the Earth's volume, whereas the mantle occupies 84 percent. The crust makes up the remaining 1 percent. Our knowledge of the layering and th chemical composition of the Earth is steadily being improved by earth scientists doing laboratory experiments on rocks at high pressure and analyzing earthquake records on ar computers. E S H -S U dD A a. Crust  ATENEO DE DAVAO UNIVERSITY Km 7 Central Park Blvd, Talomo, 8016 Davao City, Philippines Tel No. +63 (82) 221.2411 local 8608 E-Mail: [email protected] * www.addu.edu.ph In Consortium with Ateneo de Zamboanga University and Xavier University SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL – BIOLOGY AND EARTH & LIFE SCIENCE CLUSTER Because the crust is accessible to us, its geology has been extensively studied, and therefore much more information is known about its structure and composition than about the structure and composition of the mantle and core. Within the crust, intricate patterns are created when rocks are redistributed and deposited in layers through the geologic processes of eruption and intrusion of lava, erosion, and consolidation of rock particles, ce and solidification and recrystallization of porous rock. en ci S fe Li & Figure 1. The oceanic crust at the island of Hawaii is about 5 kilometers thick. The thickness of the continental crust under eastern California ranges from 25 kilometers th under the Great Valley to 60 kilometers under the Sierra Nevada. ar By the large-scale process of plate tectonics, about twelve plates, which contain combinations of continents and ocean basins, have moved around E on the Earth's surface through much of geologic time. The edges of the plates are marked by concentrations of earthquakes and volcanoes. S Collisions of plates can produce mountains like the Himalayas, the tallest H range in the world. The plates include the crust and part of the upper mantle, and they move over a hot, yielding upper mantle zone at very -S slow rates of a few centimeters per year, slower than the rate at which fingernails grow. The crust is much thinner under the oceans than under U continents (see figure above). dD The boundary between the crust and mantle is called the Mohorovicic discontinuity (or Moho); it is named in honor of the man who discovered it, A the Croatian scientist Andrija Mohorovicic. No one has ever seen this boundary, but it can be detected by a sharp increase downward in the speed of earthquake waves there. The explanation for the increase at the Moho is presumed to be a change in rock types. Drill holes to penetrate the Moho have been proposed, and a Soviet hole on the Kola Peninsula has been drilled to a depth of 12 kilometers, but drilling expense increases enormously with depth, and Moho penetration is not likely very soon. b. Mantle  ATENEO DE DAVAO UNIVERSITY Km 7 Central Park Blvd, Talomo, 8016 Davao City, Philippines Tel No. +63 (82) 221.2411 local 8608 E-Mail: [email protected] * www.addu.edu.ph In Consortium with Ateneo de Zamboanga University and Xavier University SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL – BIOLOGY AND EARTH & LIFE SCIENCE CLUSTER Our knowledge of the upper mantle, including the tectonic plates, is derived from analyses of earthquake waves; heat flow, magnetic, and gravity studies; and laboratory experiments on rocks and minerals. Between 100 and 200 kilometers below the Earth's surface, the temperature of the rock is near the melting point; molten rock erupted by some volcanoes originates in this region of the mantle. This zone of ce extremely yielding rock has a slightly lower velocity of earthquake waves and is presumed to be the layer on which the tectonic plates ride. Below en this low-velocity zone is a transition zone in the upper mantle; it contains two discontinuities caused by changes from less dense to more dense minerals. The chemical composition and crystal forms of these minerals ci have been identified by laboratory experiments at high pressure and S temperature. The lower mantle, below the transition zone, is made up of relatively simple iron and magnesium silicate minerals, which change fe gradually with depth to very dense forms. Going from mantle to core, there is a marked decrease (about 30 percent) in earthquake wave Li velocity and a marked increase (about 30 percent) in density. & a. Core th The core was the first internal structural element to be identified. It was ar discovered in 1906 by R.D. Oldham, from his study of earthquake records, and it helped to explain Newton's calculation of the Earth's density. The E outer core is presumed to be liquid because it does not transmit shear (S) waves and because the velocity of compressional (P) waves that pass S through it is sharply reduced. The inner core is considered to be solid H because of the behavior of P and S waves passing through it. Data from earthquake waves, rotations and inertia of the whole Earth, -S magnetic-field dynamo theory, and laboratory experiments on melting and alloying of iron all contribute to the identification of the composition of the U inner and outer core. The core is presumed to be composed principally of dD iron, with about 10 percent alloy of oxygen or sulfur or nickel, or perhaps some combination of these three elements. A  ATENEO DE DAVAO UNIVERSITY Km 7 Central Park Blvd, Talomo, 8016 Davao City, Philippines Tel No. +63 (82) 221.2411 local 8608 E-Mail: [email protected] * www.addu.edu.ph In Consortium with Ateneo de Zamboanga University and Xavier University SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL – BIOLOGY AND EARTH & LIFE SCIENCE CLUSTER ce en ci S fe This table of depths, densities, and composition is derived mostly from information in a Li textbook by Don L. Anderson. Scientists are continuing to refine the chemical and mineral composition of the Earth's interior by laboratory experiments, by using & pressures 2 million times the pressure of the atmosphere at the surface and temperatures as high as 20000C. th ar E S H -S U dD A