Earth's Spheres
This sphere contains all of the liquid water on Earth.
What is the hydrosphere?
This stage describes when water droplets begin to come together.
What is condensation?
These rocks are formed from intense heat and pressure.
What are metamorphic rocks?
Plants use CO2 for this process.
What is photosynthesis?
Nitrogen exists in this form in the atmosphere.
What is N2?
This sphere contains all of the living organisms on Earth.
What is the biosphere?
This provides all of the energy to begin the Water Cycle.
What is the Sun?
What are igneous rocks?
This is the form carbon exists as within the atmosphere.
What is Carbon Dioxide (CO2)?
These organisms break down complex nitrogen compounds, returning them to the soil.
What are decomposers?
This sphere contains all of the frozen water on Earth.
What is the cryosphere?
This drives the following stages of the Water Cycle: precipitation, surface runoff, and infiltration.
What is gravity?
These rocks are formed by compaction and cementation.
What are sedimentary rocks?
Animals, such as ourselves, return carbon in this form to the atmosphere.
What is Carbon Dioxide (CO2)?
This step describes the process by which organisms take in nitrogen in usable forms.
What is assimilation?
This percentage is the amount of salt water on Earth.
What is 97.5%?
This stage describes the movement of water along the top of the ground due to gravity.
What is surface runoff?
These are the only rocks to contain fossils.
What are sedimentary rocks?
Carbon dioxide can diffuse into this from the atmosphere.
What is the ocean?
This step describes when bacteria convert Nitrogen Gas (N2) into organic compounds.
What is Nitrogen Fixation?
This percentage is the amount of water usable by humans.
What is <1%?
This stage occurs when water leaves the pours on the leaves of plants.
These rocks often contain bands and crystals.
What are metamorphic rocks?
The burning of these contributes heavily to global warming.
What are fossil fuels?
This step describes when soil bacteria convert nitrate ions (NO3-) into Nitrogen gas (N2).
What is denitrification?