ENV 110 Chapter 2: Lecture 2

• School: University of Portland
• Department: Environmental Studies
• Course: ENV 110
• Professor: Kali Abel

Document Summary

Lecture 2: a plastic asthenosphere permits tectonic plate motion, a star is close enough to warm earth and its atmosphere, liquid water is possible; thus, weathering and erosion, biotic evolution continually modifies the biosphere. Life on earth is due to interactions among the: lithosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere. The earth system is composed of these physical components interacting with the biosphere. The interlinkage of the physical and the biological: Global changes transform or modify both realms: there are many ways to describe changes, gradual change, catastrophic change, unidirectional change, cyclic change. Evolution of the solid earth: planetesimal accretion, melting and differentiation. Formation of the moon: mars-sized protoplanet collides, mantle blasted into space, debris coalesced to form the moon. Evolution of the atmosphere and oceans: volcanic gases created an early atmosphere, co2, h2o, n2, liquid water condensed to form the oceans, photosynthetic organisms appeared, o2 becomes a significant component of the atmosphere. Evolution of life: life appeared on.