Introduction to Earth Science

Why is Earth Science important? Well, if you think about it, Earth Science affects all our lives. Just with the sudden changes of weather; or the natural calamities that we have to prepare for; or even the origins of the ordinary things we use every day, everything from a piece of paper to the clothes we wear, even from the vehicles we use for transportation up to the oils needed for it to operate, if deconstructed, have all once been natural materials produced and extracted from this very planet. And all that’s mentioned is only a minuscule portion of what you can actually ascertain from earth science. 

You see, the study of Earth Science allows you to understand many other areas of life with great depth such as atmospheric and weather changes, environmental issues, horticulture and even agriculture. Many different sciences are used to learn about the earth, however, the four basic areas of Earth Science study are: geology (study of Earth), meteorology (study of the atmosphere and the processes that produce weather), oceanography (the study of the ocean) and astronomy (study of the universe). Earth Science is a fascinating field which develops our ability to identify and describe the Earth, its structure, and its composition and explain processes that affect change in it. 

Alright, learning all these might sound dreary for some people but they are important. It is truthfully an exciting science with many interesting and practical applications. For instance, if you just consider the significance of having adequate knowledge about our current environmental issues and their solutions, then all that education can be used to HELP SAVE THE EARTH! Okay. Maybe that was an overstatement. But imagine for a minute that you can. Besides, with every hazardous condition our world is throwing right at us, maybe you’re the ‘Superman’ we’ve been waiting for all along yet instead of being the defender of humankind, you can be the defender of nature! And humankind, again! Now how does that sound? Or you can be like Disney’s WALL-E! You know, all rusty and cute, WALL-E? The one who proved that despite the tacit death of earth, there’s still a chance to save it! Or revive it, or whatever. Ha! And it’s all thanks to Earth Science…

But enough about all this ‘END OF THE WORLD’ stuff. We’ll get back to that some other time. For now, why not put back the light on a different perspective. Like ‘THE BIRTH OF EARTH’! Now, what better way to begin studying Earth Science than to discuss how our solar system was formed, right? Well, it all started in the year 1734 when Emanuel Swedenborg first proposed the nebular hypothesis. The nebular hypothesis describes the formation of the solar system. The planets and Sun began forming about 5 billion years ago from a large cloud of dust and gases. As the cloud contracted, it began to rotate and assume a disk shape. Material that was gravitationally pulled toward the center became the protosun (a term for a star that is still forming). Within the rotating disk, small centers, called protoplanets, swept up more and more of the cloud's debris. Because of their high temperatures and weak gravitational fields, the inner planets were unable to accumulate and retain many of the lighter components. Because of the very cold temperatures existing far from the Sun, the large outer planets consist of huge amounts of lighter materials. These gaseous substances account for the comparatively large sizes and low densities of the outer planets. An image below is presented to better understand the nebular hypothesis.

If the ‘Birth of the Earth and our Solar System’ still baffles you, then check out this video by an awesome YouTuber ‘MIKOLBZ’ who made a montage of how the ‘Nebular Hypothesis’ supposedly occurred billions of years ago.

 

Focusing on Earth itself, our planet’s physical environment is traditionally divided into three major parts: the solid Earth or geosphere (which consists of the crust, mantle, and core); the water portion of our planet, the hydrosphere; and Earth's gaseous envelope, the atmosphere. In addition, the biosphere, the totality of life on Earth, interacts with each of the three physical realms and is an equally integral part of Earth. 

One thing’s for sure though; the Earth is so dynamic that there is always something new to study and discover. So let’s take this learning experience step by step. Let this ‘Introduction to Earth Science’ be enough for now to allow our tiny minds get wrapped around in the massive universe of intelligence. Think of this as a warm up because in the weeks to come, it’s certainly going to be intense. Or not. It will all depend on the topic I’ll be blogging, of course. But either way, you’ll just have to prepare yourself and buckle up! This is not going to be an ordinary walk in the park. No way! THIS… IS… NAT SCI 102!

 

P.S. I’m not scaring you or anything, okay? Science should be fun! So we’ll make it fun for everyone! Do comment and share your thoughts about my blog. Whether you learned something or nothing just let me know. Maybe I can shake things up a little bit to make it better. If you have queries regarding the subjects I’ve posted, feel free to ask and I’ll share my time to help you out. ‘Til next time…

ERICSON OUT. =.)

P.P.S. All these information I'm sharing with you comes from my Natural Sciences class provided by my professor, Mr. Crisencio Paner. If you want to learn more, click here.