Weathering, Erosion, Soil of Earth
Module 6
What is it's role on the lithosphere?
The role that weathering and erosion play on the lithosphere is the process of breaking down rock for many purposes such as providing minerals for soil as they are broken down into small particles of rock or changing the surface of earth through years of rock erosion and weathering shaping the world over thousands of years shifting the landform overtime with the movement of small rocks and wearing away of bigger formations such as mountains using those smaller rocks and particles carried by the wind and other things carrying away the particles of the formation bit by bit weathering and eroding. And the soil of earth relates to the weathering and erosion processes of earth because of soil erosion and rock minerals improving the soil over time. While the other units can relate to soil through things such as the layers of the earth with the soil consisting in it or having relations to the age of certain structures and possibly having a bad relation with the volcanic activity damaging the soil quality by either burning the land and wiping out vegetative life or blocking the sky with ash preventing the possibility of plant growth with a lack of sunlight. And if Module seven is part of this the soil quality relies on many things such as our use of it and if it gets the right amounts of carbon to support life.
How is this topic related to the other topics we have studied?
The way this topic relates to others is through the use of earth's minerals and rocks from different sources such as volcanoes, fossils, and pressure forming rocks of different types such as igneous relating to module 4. The formations of layers from combined minerals to create the vast layers of ground that we know of today relating to module 5. The rocks of the earth are moved from one place to another by erosion that constantly takes place everyday relating to module 6. And the quality of the soil can rely on the quality of the sky which would be bad if a volcanic eruption happened leaving the ground without sunlight and moisture by the time it either got covered by ash or burnt by the lava destroying the life in the soil either relating to module 5.
How does this impact our lives?
The movement of rock could cause complications to humans with things such as landslides and sinkholes that could could have fatal effects on neighboring homes with destruction of both home and land moving the soil rendering some of our farms useless for crop growth needed to support human life. While the weathering of rock also affects the strength of structures making them weaker over time leading to structure collapse and other things such as road weathering leaving the people affected by less sustainable travel. The soil however impacts us due to its production of plants and trees which provide the oxygen we breath and the food we eat to live along with the sources of aquifer water that we use as a source of hydration for both us and the plants the soil grows.
Specifics of Weathering
The process of weathering has relations to the lithosphere due to the wearing away of the land structures and contribution to the rock cycle with the breakdown of minerals to reform into a new rock either through pressure or heat. Weathering relates to the other topics by showing how mountains wear away over time and how rocks are able to wear away and change into new ones over time. This impacts our lives by changing the land over time causing small and big problems such as weathered road making driving riskier and the changing of historical landmarks as the years pass by from nature and humans.
Specifics of Erosion
The process of erosion is relatable to the lithosphere because it is responsible for the formation of the surface over time like the tectonic plates except in a smaller version of effect. It is relatable to other Modules in this course through things such as the movement of rocks and minerals to different locations causing new rocks to form depending on the destination whether it be the ocean or back into the molten mantle and with the movement of rocks and minerals they could take bits of structures such as mountains over periods of time with the small collisions it can create. This process has an effect on use by moving material such soil and mass amounts of rocks like a landslide causing damages to anything near its impact zone. And the process of erosion is also a contributor to the changing of the land over time with the movement of rock and soil as the years pass by whether it be natural or human caused erosion.
Specifics of Soil
The soil of earth contributes to the lithosphere acting as the very top of it that supports life on earth through things such as plants and trees that provide us with food and oxygen to breath, to the water it contains from aquifers below that are hundreds and thousands of years old, to the contribution of the greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. The soil relates to the other modules due to the fact that it contributes to the rock cycle through the weathering of rocks as the roots of plants and trees break the rocks of earth apart making them more subdued to erosion as they get smaller and small after the tree or plant has done its part. Also the soil of different countries contains the same species fossils from the plate tectonics of Pangea which are considered a form of sedimentary rock after it might have became coal or some other rock after thousands of years under the surface. The soil affects us more than any of these processes because it is what gives us life, it does so by producing the plants that we use for the gathering of food and other such crops and it provides us with the oxygen we breath in and need to keep blood levels healthy. Without it we wouldn't be here because it provides the plants and trees that provide us with oxygen so without it earth wouldn't have to much of a breathable air. And the seconds reason is because the plants and trees it gives us feed us as well with the nutrients we need to grow, survive, and thrive. And if we continue to advance in technology it could help reverse the greenhouse gases in the atmosphere and enrichen the soil even more for better crop quality and more plant grow overall.
By: Garrett L. Reed
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