Earth's Spheres
This sphere contains all the air / gases on the planet.
What is the atmosphere?
The process of liquid water changing into water vapor.
What is evaporation?
Light from the sun that is converted into electrical energy.
What is solar power?
a nonrenewable black rock found underground and burned to generate electricity
What is coal?
chemicals used by farmers to manage pests and protect their crops
What are pesticides?
This sphere contains all the liquid water on our planet.
What is the hydrosphere?
Water released from clouds in the form of rain, freezing rain, sleet, snow, or hail.
What is precipitation?
Uses turbines to generate electricity
What is wind power?
a black liquid mixture found underground (and even under the ocean floor!) that can be extracted and refined to produce fuels including gasoline
What is oil/petroleum?
traps heat to keep Earth warm and protects Earth from UV rays and space debris
What is the atmosphere?
This sphere contains all the land, rocks, and other solids on Earth.
What is the geosphere?
Describes a variety of ways liquid water moves across land.
What is runoff?
uses a dam and the kinetic energy of moving water to generate electricity
What is hydropower?
formed from dead plants and animals that were buried under layers of rock and produce lots of carbon when burned; this group of energy sources contains oil, coal, and natural gas
What are fossil fuels?
large areas that serve as the final destination for trash to be buried underground
What are landfills?
This sphere contains all the living things on Earth, including animals and plants.
What is the biosphere?
The process of water collecting in rivers, lakes, streams, oceans and other bodies of water
What is accumulation?
Renewable resources ________ as quickly as they are used.
What is replenish?
the low-carbon use of sustained nuclear fission to generate heat and electricity, this contributes nearly 20% of the electricity generated in America
What is nuclear power?
underwater structures and ecosystems built by tiny sea animals that are home to millions of species of marine life
What are coral reefs?
This sphere contains all the frozen water on the planet.
What is the cryosphere?
The process of water vapor in the air turning into liquid water (like when clouds form).
What is condensation?
A source of heat energy found in the Earth's crust where magma heats up groundwater like a hot spring.
What is geothermal energy?
a gas occurring naturally underground as a fossil fuel, extracted by a process called "fracking", and burned for heat, cooking, and at power plants for electricity
What is natural gas?
3 devices (technologies) used to harness renewable energy
What are solar panels, hydroelectric dams, and wind turbines?