EARTH SCIENCE

o nearly 97.4% of the composed of saline or

COVERAGE: salt, the remaining 2.6% is made up of fresh
1. earths vital statistic and water,
system  biosphere
2. layers of the Earth and its o the biosphere refers to the narrow
Composition band on the Earth’s surface where
all biological life resides.
o this could range from bustling cities,
 Earth science lush tropical rainforests, arid deserts,
o is the study of the dynamic Earth and its or even extreme environments like
processes, properties, structures, and its the bottom of the ocean floor.
relationship with its neighbors in space.
 geosphere
FOUR MAIN DISCIPLINES o the geosphere is the largest out of
all the spheres
 geology o extending from the surface of the
o the study of earth materials Earth down to its center.
 meteorology o it is composed of external processes
o the study of the atmosphere that we can observe on the surface
 oceanography and internal processes that happen
o the study of oceans deep within.
 astronomy LAYERS OF THE EARTH AND ITS COMPOSITION
o the study of celestial bodies

EARTHS VITAL STATISTIC AND SYSTEM Earth can be subdivided into layers based on two
criteria: (1) composition (density) differences and
the Earth is composed of systems or “spheres”, (2) physical properties.
each having their own unique properties, that
continuously interact with one another BASED ON COMPOSITIONAL DIFFERENCES

WE CAN DIVIDE THEM INTO FOUR MAJOR  crust

SPHERES o this is the thinnest and outermost
layer of the earth.
 atmosphere
The atmosphere is a collective layer of gas
o o there are two types of crust– the
that envelopes the Earth continental crust and the oceanic
- it shields the Earth and its crust.
inhabitants from harmful ultraviolet
(UV) radiation from the Sun;  the continental crust is the older and more
- maintains the warmth of the Earth’s buoyant type of crust,
surface
- contains all of the essential gasses o composition consisting of granite
needed to support life.
 hydrosphere
 the oceanic crust is the younger and
o the hydrosphere refers to the bodies of
denser type
water consisting of freely flowing bodies of
water found on the surface of the Earth o it is composed of basalt
o as well as water reservoirs stored below the
ground as groundwater
 mantle
o this sphere covers nearly 71% of the Earth’s
o the mantle comprises the majority of the
surface.
earth’s volume (more than 80%) and begins

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where the crust ends, down to a depth of o is a mechanically weak layer consisting of
2,900 km. the lower portion of the upper mantle,
extending down to 660 km.
o the boundary between the crust and mantle
is called the mohorovičić discontinuity o it is not a “sea of molten rock”. the upper
mantle is actually composed of an mg- and
o it can be divided into two parts: the upper fe-rich rock called peridotite.
mantle and the lower mantle
- separated by the repetti o at this depth, the temperature and pressure
discontinuity. conditions are high enough that rocks
core become ductile and deform easily.
o the core begins at the mantle-core
boundary, the gutenberg discontinuity, - because of this, the asthenosphere
located at the 2,900 km depth. flows more like very, very viscous
fluid (but remember: it is not liquid!)
o scientific investigations led to the conclusion and moves independently from the
that its composition is made up of a fe-ni overlying lithosphere. this is a very
(iron and nickel) alloy. important mechanism for plate
tectonics

 mesosphere
o beneath the asthenosphere is the
mesosphere (from the greek word mesos
meaning “middle”),

o made up of the lower mantle, and reaches

down to the 2,900 km depth.

o the dominant rock type in this layer is a

silicate rock called perovskite.

o unlike the asthenosphere, the mesosphere

is much stronger and flows with more
resistance. because of the immense
pressure from the overlying layers, the
strength of this layer increases with depth.
BASED ON PHYSICAL PROPERTIES  outer core
o unlike all the other mechanical layers, the
 lithosphere outer core is the only one made out of liquid
o the lithosphere (from the greek word lithos — melted fe-ni alloy, to be exact.
meaning “stone”)
o the liquid nature of this layer can be
o is a thick and brittle layer that comprises the attributed to extremely high temperatures
entire crust and uppermost layer of the (more than 3000°c!) that melt fe, ni, and all
upper mantle. other elements.

 asthenosphere o the flow of the liquid metals is responsible

o the asthenosphere (from the greek word for the earth’s magnetic field.
asthenēs meaning “weak”)
o the outer-inner core boundary is also known
as the lehmann discontinuity.

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 inner core o it refers to the wavelengths of light reflected
o despite the extreme temperature, the by the minerals. while it can be tempting to
overwhelming pressure in this layer forces identify a mineral based on its color
the inner core to be a solid ball of mostly fe. o it is the least useful property because a lot
of minerals can occur in different colors
o temperatures in the inner core are similar to  luster
the temperatures of the surface of the sun— o it describes how light is reflected from the
around more than 5400°c. mineral’s surface
o a mineral could have a metallic luster or
nonmetallic luster similar to pearls (pearly),
glass (vitreous), resin (resinous), silk
COVERAGE:
(silky), or others. brilliantly cut gems are
1. Minerals
described to have an adamantine luster
2. Rocks
3. Depositional Environments,  crystal habit or shape.
Landforms, and Waterforms o this refers to the shape of each individual
crystal or an aggregate of crystals
o although a single mineral can occur in a
variety of shapes
MINERALS o crystal habit can still be an identifying
 minerals feature in certain minerals
o are building blocks of rocks.  hardness.
o this refers to how resistant a mineral is to
TO BE CONSIDERED A MINERAL, IT MUST BE scratching. the mohs’ hardness scale is a
THE FOLLOWING tool used to describe a mineral’s hardness
relative to other minerals
 naturally-occurring
o man-made materials such as synthetic
diamonds cannot be considered as real
minerals
 inorganic
o organic materials such as pearls or sugar
are not minerals
 homogeneous solid
o minerals should be crystalline solids. water
is not mineral, whereas ice is considered a
mineral. mercury occurs as a liquid in its
natural state and is considered as a mineral
 has definite chemical composition
o you should be able to describe a mineral’s
composition using a chemical formula
 ordered crystalline structure
o atoms in a mineral are placed in a repetitive
and orderly manner. substances that lack
this kind of atomic structure such as
obsidian (volcanic glass) or plastic are not
considered as minerals  cleavage or fracture
o cleavage refers to the tendency of a mineral
PROPERTIES OF MINERALS to break along preferred planes called
zones of weakness.
 color o if a mineral doesn’t break along zones of
weakness, a fracture is produced.
 density or specific gravity
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o this refers to the ratio between a mineral’s o a lodestone is a type of magnetized
weight and the weight of a specific volume magnetite that has the ability to
of water (water has a specific gravity of 1) magnetically attract other material
o heavy minerals such as gold or platinum  effervescence
have very high specific gravity whereas light o this describes a mineral’s reaction when
minerals such as graphite have low specific exposed to a strong acid such as hcl
gravity (hydrochloric acid).
 tenacity o this is due to the chemical reaction that
o this describes how well a mineral handles results between caco3 and hcl in carbonate
stress such as breaking, crushing, bending, minerals and rocks
or tearing. o highly effervescent minerals like calcite
o minerals that are susceptible to cracking or exhibit intense “fizzing” or “bubbling” when
breaking are called brittle (examples: exposed to hcl. some minerals are weakly
quartz, calcite) effervescent and only show light “fizzing”
o a mineral that deforms under stress but such as rhodochrosite and azurite
snaps back to its original shape after the  odor and taste
stress is removed is called elastic o you may have heard that some geologists
(examples: mica minerals) lick rocks.
o on the other hand, if a mineral is deformed o while that may seem a bit wacky and weird,
under stress but doesn’t go back to its it is true that geologists lick and even smell
original shape, it is then called flexible rocks in order to identify them
(example: vermiculite) o halite, more popularly known as “rock salt”,
o metallic minerals such as gold, copper, or is a mineral that gives off a salty taste
silver are called malleable due to their o other examples are borax which gives off a
ability to be flattened into sheets. sweet taste
o copper is also ductile because it can be o epsomite which tastes bitter
drawn into thin wires without breaking. o chalcanthite which is sweet tasting but also
o sectile minerals such as gold or gypsum slightly poisonous
can be carved out into thin sheets with a o sulfur and pyrite can be identified by their
knife “rotten egg”-like smell
 diaphaneity
o this refers to how well light travels through a to this date, thousands of different minerals have
mineral been identified and named– and the list grows
o transparent minerals allow almost all of every year! However, only a few of these minerals
the light to travel through the mineral are abundant on the Earth’s crust and they are
(examples: some quartz, some calcite) called rock-forming minerals
o translucent minerals only allow some of
the light to travel and exit the mineral, giving
off a cloudy or murky appearance
(examples: smoky quartz, gypsum). opaque
minerals do not allow light to travel through
at all (examples: gold, copper, pyrite)
 magnetism
o this describes the magnetic property of a
mineral
o magnetite is an example of a strongly
magnetic (strongly attracted to magnets)
mineral. there are also moderately and
weakly magnetic minerals such as
chromite, ilmenite, columbite, and others.

ROCKS

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 igneous rocks

o igneous rocks (from latin word ignis

meaning “fire”) are formed when molten
material cools and solidifies.

o when igneous rocks formed below the

surface of the earth, they are called
intrusive igneous rocks or plutonic
rocks. when they form on the surface, they
are called extrusive igneous rocks or
volcanic rocks.
 sedimentary rocks
o intrusive and extrusive rocks o sedimentary rocks are formed from loose
- can generally be distinguished using the material called sediments that have been
size of their mineral grains eroded in a process called weathering
- intrusive rocks have bigger or and then buried and compacted in a
coarser grain crystals process called diagenesis.

- while extrusive rocks have smaller or o the sediments that make up sedimentary
finer crystals. this is because higher rocks can come from pre-existing rocks
temperatures beneath the earth’s and materials or from the remains of living
surface slow down the cooling rate of things. because of this
minerals, giving more time for larger
crystals to form.
there are two main classifications of sedimentary
o the composition of igneous rocks largely rocks:
depends on what type of magma or lava
a. clastic sedimentary rocks
they form from. the composition of magma
o sediments come from pre-existing rocks.
is dependent on the amount of silica (sio2),
which affects its viscosity, and the clastic sedimentary rocks are classified
temperature. based on the characteristics of their clasts
such as size, angularity/roundedness, and
- komatiite is a very rare type of extrusive sorting
igneous rock which forms when
extremely hot lava cools rapidly and was
common during the archean eon.
however, current surface conditions do
not allow komatiite to form anymore.

- other more common types of extrusive

rocks are obsidian (formed when lava
rapidly cools; also known as volcanic
glass), bombs (rounded solidified lava
fragments), blocks (angular solidified
lava fragments), and volcanic ash.

b. non-clastic sedimentary rocks

o chemical sedimentary rocks are formed
when water evaporates, leaving behind
dissolved minerals. common examples
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include halite or rock salt, rock gypsum, flint, o nonfoliated rocks
chert, travertine, umber, and some - usually develop in environments where
limestone rocks. deformation is minimal and other factors
such as chemically-active fluids play a
larger part in altering the rock. some
common examples of nonfoliated rocks
are marble, hornfels, quartzite,
metapelite, and others.

 rocks continually go through changes that

alter its characteristics, ultimately changing
 it into a different rock.

o another type called biochemical or

organic sedimentary rocks are composed
of the remains of living things (shells,
bones, plant fragments, etc.). common
examples include some fossiliferous
limestone (contains fossils), chalk
(composed of very tiny marine organisms
called coccolithophores and foraminifera),
coquina (composed of >2 mm shell
fragments and grains), and coal (altered DEPOSITIONAL ENVIRONMENTS
rock from remains of plant life).  depositional environments
o are the combination of chemical, physical,
 metamorphic rocks and biological aspects that dictate what type
o when a rock is subjected to certain of sediments, rock types, and landforms are
chemical (addition or removal of deposited or formed
chemicals) or physical (change in
temperature or pressure) processes that  erosion
alter its chemical composition, o is an important process in depositional
mineralogy, and/or texture, a environments.
metamorphic rock is formed. o it is a geological process in which earth
materials are weathered and transported.
o the original rock or “parent rock” that was erosional agents such as water, wind, ice,
altered is called a protolith. or animals and humans are responsible for
transporting these materials
o these earth materials are then “added” to an
metamorphic rocks are divided into two types
based on their texture. environment or landform in a process called
o the first type is characterized by the deposition
appearance of planar arrangement of
there are many types of depositional environments
mineral grains called foliation or foliated
but they can be classified into three main types:
rocks.

o foliation in rock  terrestrial environments

o land and water forms in this type of
- is the result of deformation and the more
foliated a rock, the higher the grade of environment can be found on land and
metamorphism. usually involve freshwater. here are some
depositional environments that fall under
this category
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HERE ARE SOME DEPOSITIONAL
fluvial rivers and streams ENVIRONMENTS THAT FALL UNDER
eolian deserts and arid TRANSITIONAL ENVIRONMENTS
environments
alluvial ice caps and glaciers
glacial mountainous beach where land meets the
environments sea in shallow waters
lacustrine lakes
deltaic where the river flows
into the sea; freshwater
ASSOCIATED LANDFORMS AND WATERFORMS mixes with seawater

tidal flat : a small body of water

closed off from a larger
body of water (the
 mountains ocean
o these are elevated (more than 2,000 ft)
areas of land, usually results of tectonic ASSOCIATED LANDFORMS AND WATERFORMS
forces. hills are similar to mountains but with
lesser steepness (below 2,000 ft).  deltas
 plains o these are areas at the end of the mouth of a
o these are relatively flat expanses of land river where freshwater mixes with seawater.
that lie above sea level. plains can occur  wetlands
between two mountains as a valley. a o these are areas that are near rivers or
plateau is a plain that is relatively elevated coastlines where soils are saturated or
than the surrounding land. submerged in water. swamps are wetlands
 desserts where trees dominate the plant life.
o these are areas that receive little rainfall and marshes are wetlands where moss and soft-
have high rates of evaporation. despite this, stemmed vegetation are most prominent.
the most dominant agent of erosion in these
areas is running water, followed by wind.  marine environments
 glacial environments o these are environments that can be found in
o these are areas where the most dominant the open waters, from the shallow depths to
erosional agent is ice. glaciers are large the deepest portions of the ocean.
masses of moving ice over land. ice sheets
are also large masses of ice that cover an HERE ARE EXAMPLES OF MARINE
extensive area of land (more than 50,000 ENVIRONMENTS
km2). shallow marine/reef region where sunlight
 rivers penetrates the water;
o long bodies of water that originate from high high energy
elevation (such as mountains or hills) and environment and
flow down to lower elevation (such as teeming with life
plains, mountain slopes, etc.). rivers are
usually supplied with water from rainfall, continental shelf extensions of
melted ice, or from natural springs from continental crust
underground in areas called drainage submerged by water
basins.
continental slope steep slope between
the shallow continental
 transitional environments
shelf and the deep
o transitional environments represent the
ocean basin
interface between land and sea. it is here
deep marine region where sunlight
where freshwater meets with seawater.
does not reach; low
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energy environment law of original strata are deposited
horizontality horizontally.

ASSOCIATED LANDFORMS AND WATERFORMS law of lateral continuity each stratum extends
laterally until it
 oceans encounters a barrier or
o these are large bodies of water that obstacle.
surround continents. seas are smaller
bodies of saltwater enclosed or partially law of cross-cutting if a geologic body (like
enclosed by land and are connected to the relationship an intrusion) or
ocean. discontinuity (like a
 atolls fault) cuts across
o these are rings or partial rings of coral that strata, then it must be
usually form around a volcanic island or younger than the strata
volcano that has receded or been eroded it cuts.
throughout time.

 guyots
o these are elevated platforms with flat tops
formed by volcanic activity near the ocean  intrusion
floor. these can be massive and reach o is an igneous rock body that forms when
heights of up to more than 600 m. they are magma cuts through sedimentary layers
also known as seamounts. and solidifies before it reaches the surface

in the 19th century, an english geologist named

COVERAGE: william smith applied these principles and
1. basics of stratigraphy produced the first geological map of britain. since
2. fossil and geological scale then, he was regarded as the father of english
3. plate tectonics geology. he also introduced another important
4. earthquake principle of stratigraphy
5. volcanoes
6. climate, weather, atmosphere
 principle of faunal succession.
o sedimentary strata may contain fossils of
BASICS OF STRATIGRAPHY plants and animals in a definite and
invariable sequence.
 stratigraphy o thus, the age of a stratum and another
is a branch of geology that deals with the study of stratum in a different location can be
rock layers, beds, or strata (singular: stratum) correlated if they share the same fossil
it is a discipline that correlates rocks and time, assemblage.
helping us understand how, why, and when a
certain configuration of strata came to be.
sometimes, different processes can occur that can
in the 17th century, a catholic priest named lead to a gap in a rock sequence called an
nicolaus steno formulated the guiding principles of unconformity. the “missing time” represented by
stratigraphy: the unconformity in a rock sequence is called a
hiatus.
law of superposition if the sequence is
undisturbed, the layers THERE ARE THREE TYPES OF UNCONFORMITIES
on the bottom are the
oldest while the layers  disconformity
above them are o this type of unconformity is present when
younger. there is a missing stratum or strata in the

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sequence, usually due to a period of non-
deposition or erosion.
 nonconformity.
o this occurs when sedimentary strata are
deposited on top of igneous or metamorphic
rock bodies.
 angular unconformity.
o when strata are disturbed by forces that
cause folding, tilting, and/or faulting, they no
longer appear horizontal. the surface is then
exposed to erosion and soon, another set of
sedimentary strata is deposited on top of
the disturbed sequence.
one important thing to note in the table above is
that even though 14c – 14n dating is a common
dating technique, it does not date the age of the
sediments of the rocks. rather, it is commonly used
to date fossils (which contain c) in a rock.

these principles and unconformities can be used to fossils are essential to stratigraphy and serve as
identify the age of strata in relation to other strata in a doorway through which we can know more about
a method called relative dating. however, this prehistoric life.
method cannot identify the specific or absolute
age of a stratum. FOSSILS AND GEOLOGICAL SCALE

determining the absolute age of a layer requires  fossils

certain techniques collectively known as absolute are the remains of life that are preserved within
dating. sediments and sedimentary rocks.

one of the best ways to date the numerical age of a  paleontology

rock is to use an absolute dating method called is the study of fossils linking concepts of geology
radioisotopic dating or radiometric dating. and biology in order to understand prehistoric life
over geologic time.
as you’ve learned in chemistry, isotopes are
atoms of an element that have different when an animal or plant dies, decomposition,
numbers of neutrons and thus, different atomic scavengers, and other natural factors usually
masses. radioactive isotopes are unstable remove the soft parts of the organism. so in order
(parent isotopes) and lose subatomic particles or to produce a fossil
energy over time in a process called radioactive
decay. two conditions must be observed:

eventually, the parent isotope’s configuration (1) the organism must possess hard parts
reaches a more stable configuration and turns into (bones, teeth, etc.) and (2) rapid burial of the
a daughter isotope. the half-life of a radioactive remains increases the chance of preservation
isotope refers to the time it takes for half of the
atoms in a substance to decay. DIFFERENT WAYS A FOSSIL CAN BE
PRESERVED
depending on the rock type, different radiometric
dating methods can be used. here are some of the  permineralization
most common radiometric dating methods: o this occurs when pores and open spaces in
tissue (such as bone and wood) are filled up
with minerals precipitated from mineral-rich
solutions such as groundwater.

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o an example of permineralization at work is unified terminologies for geologists
when silica precipitates inside the pores of around the world to use in stratigraphy.
the wood, creating petrified wood. the image
above is an example of a permineralized boundaries of time units change often,
dinosaur vertebra. depending on new findings and discoveries.
 molds and cast
o when organisms buried in sediment dissolve  based on the radiometric dating of the oldest
or decay away, it leaves behind a hollow rocks on earth, the age of earth is believed to
space called mold in the shape of the be 4.534 billion years old. since then, a lot has
organism. if this hollow space is eventually transpired on our little earth.
filled in by minerals, a cast is made.
 amber CONDENSED HISTORY OF THE EARTH
o organisms in amber are exceptionally
preserved well, often still containing its soft hadean eon the formation of the
parts. these organisms are preserved when earth; magma ocean;
they fall into a viscous tree sap which intense bombardment
hardens into amber. of space bodies (“late
 carbonization heavy
o soft-bodied organisms and delicate plant bombardment”)
parts can be conserved via carbonization. archean eon life begins as
this happens when these organisms are prokaryotic bacteria;
buried in sediment and eventually dissolve blue-green algae
away, leaving behind a thin layer of carbon start to produce
outlining the organism’s shape. oxygen in the
 freezing atmosphere
o organisms can also be exceptionally proterozoic eon multicellular life
emerges
preserved when they are encased in ice. the
image above is of lyuba, a baby mammoth cambrian period multicellular life
that was found frozen in ice in Siberia flourishes and
diversifies (“cambrian
explosion”)
 trace fossils
ordovician period : “age of
o a fossil doesn’t only pertain to the actual
invertebrates”
organism. a fossil can be preserved records
silurian period emergence of
of its activities such as tracks, burrows,
plants on land
coprolites (fossilized poop), and gastroliths
(stomach stones).
devonian period “age of fishes”;
o trace fossils can tell a lot about how an
towards the end, true
organism lived– how it moved, what it ate,
amphibians emerged
and other types of behavior.
carboniferous period age of amphibians
mississippian amphibians
 the geologic time scale
diversified; large coal
o the geologic time scale (gts) is a tool
swamps formed
used by geologists in order to
pennsylvanian emergence of reptiles
classify and date rocks and fossils.
permian period existence of
instead of using numerical ages, time is
pangaea; largest
divided into units such as eons, eras,
mass extinction in
periods, epochs, and ages (in
earth’s history
descending order of duration).
occurred towards the
end (“the great
the gts is maintained by an
o
paleozoic extinction”)
international body called the
triassic period dinosaurs
international commission on
emerged; start of
stratigraphy (ics) which aims to create
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EARTH SCIENCE
the age of
reptiles; first true
mammals
(therapsids)
emerged as well

jurassic period dinosaurs dominated  if you take the boundaries of each continent and
the earth; first birds try to fit them together, you’d get a landmass
emerged similar to the configuration of pangaea.
cretaceous period first flowering plants  wegener argued that the remarkable fit of the
paleogene period start of the age of continents was more than a coincidence, citing
mammals the almost perfect fit of south america and
neogene period mammals and birds africa.
evolved into modern
forms; hominids, the
ancestors of humans,
appeared towards the
end
quaternary period current period; a
cycle of glacial and
interglacial periods
PLATE TECTONICS evidence #2. fossils

 the continental drift hypothesis

o paved the way for the emergence and
acceptance of the plate tectonics theory.
o it was proposed by a german
meteorologist and geophysicist
named alfred wegener.
o wegener hypothesized that long ago,
there was a supercontinent that
consisted of all landmasses on earth.
o he named this supercontinent pangaea
(from the greek words pan meaning
“all” and gaia meaning “land”).
o he and other supporters of the
 similar fossil remains of plants and animals
continental drift hypothesis collected
were found on continents that are currently
evidence to substantiate their claims.
separated by large bodies of water.
paleontologists agreed that these organisms
EVIDENCE OF THE CONTINENTAL DRIFT
wouldn’t have been able to cross these oceans
HYPOTHESIS
due to inherent characteristics
evidence #1. continental jigsaw puzzle
evidence #3. similar rock types and geologic
features

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 new oceanic crust forms in the axis of
this ridge system.
 rocks become progressively older and
 large mountain belts of similar ages and rock thicker with sediment away
types could be matched with each other across  from the axis. this phenomenon was
continents. this is the case with the appalachian termed as seafloor spreading by harry
mountains in the eastern margin of north hess and robert dietz.
america being similar to the caledonian
mountains in the western margin of h
scandinavia.

evidence #4. ancient climates

 according to wegener, evidence suggesting that

there were glaciers before in present-day  the plate tectonics
continents (such as africa, south america, and o model states that the lithosphere is broken
australia) located in the equator supported up into rigid slabs called tectonic plates or
continental drift. simply plates. these plates overlie the
 however, the opposition to the hypothesis ductile asthenosphere, allowing them to be
suggested that this may be due to a period of in constant motion with respect to one
extreme global cooling. another.
 wegener asserted that this was not the case
because there was also evidence showing that there are seven major plates that cover 94% of
large tropical swamps co-existed with the the earth’s surface area:
glaciers at the time.
1. african plate
despite all these pieces of evidence, the 2. antarctic plate
continental drift hypothesis was still not 3. eurasian plate
accepted by the scientific community mostly 4. indo-australian plate
because of one problem: wegener could not 5. north american plate
explain how the continents drifted. it wasn’t 6. pacific plate
until after his death would the mystery be 7. south american plate
solved.
there are also minor plates such as the philippine
sea plate, juan de fuca plate, cocos plate, nazca
The Development of the Plate Tectonics plate, scotia plate, and arabian plate.
Theory
 as mentioned earlier, plates are always in
after world war ii, extensive ocean exploration led constant motion. because of this, the margins
to the discovery of the global oceanic ridge of the plates are always interacting with one
system which spans around the globe, making it another. the sites where these margins interact
the longest mountain range in the world (around are called plate boundaries.
80,000 km long).

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THREE MAIN TYPES OF PLATE BOUNDARIES in the east african rift in eastern
africa.
 divergent plate boundaries (constructive
margins)  convergent boundaries (destructive
margins)

o convergent boundaries are the sites where

plates move towards each other, resulting
in a collision or one plate going under the
other in a process called subduction.
o they are called destructive margins
because the crust is consumed in the
process.

o divergent plate boundaries are formed when a. oceanic-continental plates convergence

two plates move apart relative to each
other.
o these plate boundaries are also called
constructive margins because the
pulling apart of two plates results in the
migration of molten material from the
mantle to the surface, generating a new
crust. divergent boundaries can be found
both on the ocean floor and inland.
o divergent boundaries on the ocean floor
manifest as the oceanic ridge system, which
was discussed earlier.  in this case, the denser or heavier block
o new seafloor is generated via seafloor subducts or goes underneath the lesser
spreading. as the seafloor gets older, it dense block. because the oceanic crust is
gets denser and moves toward the edge made up of basalt, it subducts underneath
of the plate. simply put, younger oceanic the continental crust made up of the lighter
crust is hot and therefore less dense, granitic material in a zone called the
while the older oceanic crust is cooler subduction zone.
and denser.
- the rate of spreading varies along the  in a subduction zone, partial melting is
oceanic ridge system, going as slow as induced in the overlying continental crust,
2 cm/year or as fast as 15 cm/year. producing volcanic activity called continental
volcanic arcs. the subduction of the oceanic
o divergent boundaries that occur within a crust usually results in large, deep linear
continent generate an elongated depressions on the ocean floor called deep-
depression called a continental rift. ocean trenches.
these rifts form by the stretching and
thinning out of the lithosphere.  the deepest oceanic trench in the world is the
marianas trench in the western pacific
o the rift valleys can grow wide enough to ocean with a depth of nearly 11,000 km, deeper
split the continent apart, producing large than the height of mt. everest (8,800 km).
depressions. these depressions would
eventually be filled up with water,
producing new ocean basins.

- a good modern-day example of b. oceanic-oceanic plates convergence

continental rifting at work is the red sea
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 when two oceanic plates collide, the older

and denser one subducts.

 much like oceanic-continental convergence,  these plate boundaries are characterized by

the subduction of one plate generates two plates sliding past each other
volcanism which forms a chain of volcanic  not destroying or producing new crustal
islands called a volcanic island arc or material. they are also called transform faults
simply an island arc. and are usually found in fracture zones.

 most of the island arcs are located in the  fracture zones

western portion of the pacific ocean, while o are linear breaks on the ocean floor that
a few can be found in the atlantic ocean. run perpendicular to oceanic ridges. an
active transform fault lies between the two
offset oceanic ridges, while the areas
beyond the ridge zones are inactive zones.
c. continental-continental plate
convergence
EARTHQUAKE
 earthquakes
o occur when one block of earth slips past
another block along surfaces called faults
or fault planes and generates ground
shaking.
o the area under the earth where the slippage
originates is called the hypocenter or
focus
o the epicenter refers to the point on the
earth’s surface that is directly above the
hypocenter
 because continental crust is too thick and
buoyant to be subducted, the majority of the
crustal material is deformed and pushed up
instead. this results in the accumulation of
sediments and rocks along the margin, forming
mountain belts in a process called orogeny.

 the most famous example of this would be the

himalayan mountain range formed from the
collision of the indian and eurasian plates
nearly 50 million years ago.

3. transform plate boundaries (conservative

margins)

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o these are the waves that can cause
tremendous damage. there are also two
types:
o when slippage happens, the stored energy
is released in the form of seismic waves. the
seismic waves travel through the earth and
cause it to shake.

THESE WAVES CAN BE CLASSIFIED INTO TWO

TYPES

 body waves
o body waves are waves that travel through
the interior of the earth. there are two types
of body waves: primary waves (p waves)
and secondary waves or (s waves).

 love waves
o these waves are responsible for shaking the
ground horizontally and vertically in an s-like
pattern.

 rayleigh waves
o these waves move in a rolling motion similar
to ocean waves.

 sometimes, before the main earthquake or

o primary waves mainshock,, smaller and weaker quakes
- these are the fastest seismic waves and called foreshocks occur, the mainshock is
can travel through solid, liquid, and gas. the largest quake in the sequence.
- these waves push and pull the rocks in
the direction the wave is traveling.  weaker and shorter quakes called
- they are also called compressional aftershocks usually occur afterward. these
waves because of this behavior. quakes may or may not be felt, depending on
the size of the mainshock, and can even occur
o secondary waves over a period of days, weeks, or even months.
- these waves cause the rocks to shake
up and down at right angles with respect thousands of earthquakes occur every day around
to the direction of the traveling wave. the world, but most of these are too small to be
- s waves are slower than p waves and felt by people or cause damage.
can only travel through solids.
- because of this, s waves cannot  seismology
propagate through the liquid outer core. o is the study of earthquakes.
they are also called shear waves. o instruments that are very sensitive to
ground shaking called seismographs or
 surface waves seismometers are used by seismologists to
o surfaces waves, as the name implies, can record earthquakes.
only travel on the surface of the earth.
in order to describe and classify earthquakes, the
intensity and magnitude are determined.
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 intensity
refers to the qualitative measurement of the
amount of ground shaking at a certain location,
depending on the amount of damage to property,
life, and nature.

 different intensity scales are used in different

countries. in countries like the united states, the
modified mercalli intensity scale is used.
earthquakes along the seismic belts originate
 in the philippines, however, the phivolcs from convergent plate boundaries. the contact
earthquake intensity scale (peis) is used. this between the two interacting plates is called
scale was developed by the philippine megathrust faults which can produce earthquakes
institute of volcanology and seismology of mw 9.0 and above.
(phivolcs) as a response to the devastating
1990 luzon earthquake.  natural or man-made events can cause
earthquakes.
 magnitude
o refers to the quantitative measurement of o earthquakes caused by the eruption of
the amount of energy released at the volcanoes are called volcanic
earthquake’s source. earthquakes.
o before, the most commonly used scale for
measuring the magnitude is called the o generally, small earthquakes called
richter scale which measures the collapse earthquakes occur when
amplitude of the largest seismic wave on underground caves or mines collapse.
a seismogram.
o now, seismologists use the moment o the detonation of explosives can also
magnitude (mw) scale which measures cause earthquakes called explosion
the total amount of energy released by earthquakes
an earthquake. the moment magnitude
scale proves to be more effective in  the most common type of earthquake, tectonic
measuring stronger earthquakes (mw 5 and earthquakes, are caused by fault movement.
above) than the richter scale.
THERE ARE MAIN TYPES OF FAULTS
 faults
o where do earthquakes come from?  normal faults
fortunately for some (and unfortunately for o in a normal fault, the hanging wall moves
others), nearly 81% of earthquakes occur down relative to the footwall.
in a very tectonically-active region called o Normal faults are the result of tensional
the circum-pacific belt (popularly known forces that pull the two slabs apart.
as the ring of fire). o they are also known as tensional faults,
gravity faults, or normal-slip faults.
o the next most tectonically-active seismic
belt is the alpine-himalayan belt where  reverse faults
17% of the world’s earthquakes occur. o in a reverse fault, the hanging wall moves
the rest of the earthquakes occur along the up relative to the footwall.
mid-atlantic ridge in the atlantic ocean o this type of fault is the result of
compressional forces that push the two
slabs together, shoving the hanging wall
above the underlying block.
o these faults are also known as thrust faults,
compression faults, or reverse-slip faults.
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o during and after an earthquake, large water
 strike-slip faults pipes underground and dams may be
o in a strike-slip fault, blocks move damaged and fail. these can cause flooding
horizontally with respect to one another due in populated areas which may result in
to shearing forces. property damage and harm to life.

 left-lateral strike-slip faults (or sinistral o in enclosed bodies of water such as lakes
faults) or reservoirs, waves called seiches may
o occur when one block moves to the left occur.
relative to the other block. - these are oscillating waves that
o right-lateral strike-slip faults (or dextral produce major fluctuations in the
faults) occur when the block moves to the water level, depending on the
right. strength of the earthquake.

o one of the most dangerous effects of

 oblique-slip faults earthquakes that originate offshore are
o a combination of shearing forces and tsunamis.
tensional or compressional forces would
result in an oblique-slip fault, pictured
above. - tsunamis are giant waves that are
produced when a fault displaces a
EARTHQUAKE RELATED HAZARDS large slab of the ocean floor they
are nearly undetectable in the open
 as we all know, major earthquakes can have ocean, but once tsunamis reach
devastating effects on both living and nonliving shallow waters, wave height
things. depending on the destructive force of increases dramatically and can reach
the earthquake, it can cause the following up to 30 m, like what happened in the
events: 2004 indian ocean mw 9.1
megathrust earthquake in sumatra,
 landslides and ground subsidence indonesia.
o these are caused by ground shaking during
an earthquake.  damage to man-made structures
o depending on the material used and the
o landslide way they were constructed, structures such
- is a form of mass wasting where large as buildings, bridges, roads, dams, and
amounts of earth move down a slope others are susceptible to damage.
under the influence of gravity.
- they can have devastating effects o damage can range from cracks on the
especially in heavily populated areas walls to the total destruction of property.
near hillsides or mountain slopes. fires can also break out due to severed
o subsidence gas and electrical lines. coupled with
- is the sudden sinking of the earth’s broken water pipelines, even small fires can
surface due to the movement of the quickly spread and cause massive
earth underneath. damages.
o liquefaction
o spillage of hazardous chemicals from
- is similar to subsidence but occurs
when sediments are saturated with factories and chemical containment
water. while these events can occur facilities is also a possible threat, such as
naturally, they are usually aggravated the leakage of radioactive water from the
by earthquakes. fukushima nuclear power plant during the
2011 japan earthquake.
 flooding and water-related hazards
VOLCANOES
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o unlike the other two ways, volcanism at
 volcanism hotspots does not occur at plate
o is a geological process where hot molten boundaries. as plates move above a
rock from underneath the earth reaches the hotspot, the increase in temperature
surface through an opening in the ground. induces partial melting and generates
the most recognizable form of an opening is hotspot volcanism.
a volcano where molten material flows out
onto the surface during a volcanic eruption. o the most famous example of hotspot
 eruption volcanism is the hawaiian-emperor
o describes how the molten material was seamount chain.
ejected; whether it was violent (explosive
eruptions), non-explosive (effusive  volcano morphology
eruptions), or what caused the eruption different types of volcanoes have different shapes
(hydrothermal, phreatic, phreatomagmatic, and sizes. however, most volcanoes share certain
etc.). characteristics.

the formation of volcanoes is deeply tied with the

theory of plate tectonics.
HERE IS THE ANATOMY OF A GENERALIZED
THERE ARE THREE MAIN WAYS MAGMA CAN VOLCANO
RISE TO FORM VOLCANOES

 convergent boundaries
o as previously discussed, a process called
partial melting occurs in subduction zones,
responsible for heating and partial melting
of the rocks in the overlying plate.

o this is caused by the introduction of volatiles

(seawater, water from minerals, and other
fluids) from the oceanic lithosphere, which
lowers the melting temperature of the
surrounding rocks. the molten rock then
starts to ascend to the surface in the form of
volcanic activity.
 magma chamber
 divergent boundaries o the reservoir of molten material in the earth
o when plates move apart, there is a crust; replenished with magma from a
reduction of pressure in the lithosphere, deeper reservoir in the mantle
allowing for magma in the asthenosphere to
rise and induce partial melting of the  main vent
surrounding rocks. o the pathway for magma to come the surface

o a good example of divergent boundary-  crater

produced volcanism can be found in the o bowl-shaped depression located at the
mid-atlantic ridge. summit of the volcano that serves as the
opening of the volcano to the earth’s
 hotspots and mantle plumes surface
o mantle plumes are areas where the mantle
rises towards the surface, originating from  secondary cone
deep within the mantle. a hotspot is the o smaller parasitic volcanoes that feed on the
surface manifestation of a mantle plume. same magma chamber as the main volcano

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through secondary vents usually emits o eruptions tend to be violently explosive
volcanic gas called fumaroles and can cause lava flows, pyroclastic
flows, large ash clouds, and even lahar.
 pyroclastic materials famous examples of stratovolcanoes are
o any kind of volcanic material that is mt. fuji in japan and mt. mayon in the
extruded by a volcano such as bombs, philippines.
blocks, ashes, and others
o when a particularly explosive eruption
TYPES OF VOLCANO occurs, the stratovolcano could collapse
and form a large depression called a
 shield volcanoes caldera. our very own taal volcano is a
o shield volcanoes are large dome-shaped good example of a caldera filled in by
volcanoes that have broad gentle slopes water, creating the taal lake.
and large craters. the largest volcano on
earth, mauna loa in hawaii, is a shield VOLCANO RELATED HAZARDS
volcano.
 volcanoes can be deadly forces of nature
o these volcanoes get their broad form due to and impacts of volcanic hazards have been
the accumulation of layers of runny, fast- well-documented throughout the years. here are
moving basaltic lava flows. some of the common volcanic hazards:

o shield volcanic eruptions are typically

gentle and non-explosive, consisting of
lava fountains, lava flows, and rarely any  pyroclastic flow
pyroclastic materials. o a pyroclastic flow is a rapidly-moving
current consisting of hot gases and tephra
(volcanic material) driven by gravity. they
 cinder cones are also known as nuée ardentes (french
o cinder cones (also known as scoria cones term meaning “glowing cloud”).
or ash-cinder cones) are steeper and pyroclastic flows usually accompany
have smaller craters than shield explosive eruptions.
volcanoes. they are usually made up of
loose pyroclastic material called scoria, a
dark-colored igneous rock that is highly
vesicular (has lots of vesicles or cavities)  lahars
made from extruded basaltic magma. o lahar flows occur when volcanic material
becomes saturated with water, possibly
o cinder cone eruptions are moderately from rainfall or melted ice, and rapidly
explosive, with lava coming from inside the descends down steep volcano slopes.
vent or at the base of the volcano. cinder
cones usually have a short lifespan and o this type of volcanic hazard is particularly
are the most common types of dangerous because it can happen even
volcanoes. when a volcano is not erupting. the lahar
flows during and after the 1991 mt.
 composite volcanoes or stratovolcanoes pinatubo eruption is a good example of the
o a composite volcano is probably the most destructive power that lahar flows can bring.
recognizable form of the volcano, with its
symmetrical steep-sided cone-shaped  lava flows
morphology. alternating layers of viscous o depending on the viscosity of the lava,
andesitic lava flows, volcanic ash, and lava flows can spread out over large
cinders are responsible for its shape. distances. runny lava flows spread out
more quickly before they solidify, compared
to viscous lava.
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EARTH SCIENCE
atmosphere and thus, a very important
o due to extreme temperatures (from 600c to factor when predicting the weather.
1000 c), lava flows cannot be easily diverted
or stopped. fortunately, most lava flows can o water vapor is also one of the most
be outrun by a person on foot. important greenhouse gases because it
helps absorb heat that radiates from the
o there are three main types of lava flows. earth, heating the atmosphere.
- the first one is called aa flows
(pronounced as “ah-ah”) and is - greenhouse gases (ghg) are gases
characterized by spiky and rough that trap heat in the earth’s
surfaces. atmosphere and include other gases
- the second one is called pahoehoe such as carbon dioxide, methane,
flows (pronounced as “pa-hoy- nitrous oxide, and ozone. humidity
hoy”) and is described as having a refers to the amount of water vapor
“rope-y” appearance with smooth or moisture in the atmosphere.
surfaces.
- the last one occurs when lava is  aerosols
extruded along the oceanic ridge, o these are minuscule solid and liquid
producing smooth rounded shapes particles that are suspended in the air.
called pillow lavas.
o common examples of aerosols are smoke,
 volcanoes in the philippines are classified pollen, sea salt, dust, airborne
as active (erupted within the last 600 years), microorganisms, and other natural or man-
potentially active, and inactive. as of 2020, made sources.
there are 24 active volcanoes out of 407
volcanoes in the philippines (delos reyes,
2018). obecause of their size and weight, aerosols
can remain suspended in the air for long
CLIMATE, WEATHER,
periods of timeATMOSPHERE
(even years!).

 the atmosphere is a collective layer of gas.

o aerosols have two important functions in
the air that fills our atmosphere is composed of
many different gases. the atmosphere:
- they can be “cloud seeds” or cloud
condensation nuclei upon which
clouds form and (2)
- they can also absorb, reflect, and
scatter incoming solar radiation
from the sun, preventing harsh
amounts of uv rays that can be
 besides these gases, the atmosphere is also
damaging to earth’s inhabitants.
composed of minor and variable components
such as water vapor, aerosols, and ozone that  ozone
vary in abundance depending on time, location, o as previously discussed, ozone is one of
and other factors. the primary ghg (greenhouse gases) in
the atmosphere. it is a form of oxygen with
 despite occurring in relatively small amounts, three oxygen atoms in each molecule (o3).
these components are still very important and
can have significant effects on the o like aerosols, ozone plays an important
atmosphere. part in absorbing potentially harmful uv
radiation from the sun.
 water vapor
o water vapor is the primary source of o ozone depletion became a global issue
precipitation and cloud formation in the in the 20th century primarily due to the
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overuse of chlorofluorocarbons (cfcs) that
entered the atmosphere and broke down
the ozone.

o this problem was addressed with the

implementation of the montreal protocol
by the united nations in order to ban the  troposphere
production and use of cfcs starting in 1987. o this is the lowest layer of the atmosphere.
in this layer, temperature decreases with
PARTS OF THE ATMOSPHERE increasing altitude.
o the troposphere is the most important
 the atmosphere is not uniform all layer for meteorologists because all of
throughout. in the weather phenomena occur here.
fact, as you go from the bottom (earth’s surface) to o the outermost boundary of the troposphere
the top (towards space), you will observe changes
is called tropopause.
in temperature and pressure.
 stratosphere
 as you go up the atmosphere, the pressure
o the temperature in this region increases with
decreases due to fewer air molecules
altitude because the ozone layer is
“pressing down” on you.
located here
 most of the air molecules are heavy and are
o as discussed earlier, the ozone layer
concentrated near the surface of the earth.
becomes hot due to the absorption and
trapping of uv rays from the sun.

o commercial airplanes fly in the lower

portions of the stratosphere because of the
less frequent turbulence experienced, unlike
in the troposphere.

o the end of the stratosphere is marked by

stratopause.

 mesosphere
o the coldest temperatures in the atmosphere
(around -90°c) can be found at the end of
this layer at the mesopause.
on the other hand, temperature changes differently
as you go from one atmospheric layer to another. o the mesosphere protects us from meteors
by burning up most meteors and
LETS TAKE A LOOK AT THE DIFFERENT LAYERS asteroids before they reach the earth’s
OF THE ATMOSPHERE surface.

 thermosphere
o temperatures start to rise again in this layer
due to the constant absorption of high-
energy radiation from the sun by atoms of
oxygen and nitrogen. it is in this layer where
satellites orbit around the earth.

o at the end of the thermosphere is a very thin

layer of air called the exosphere which is
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considered the “final frontier” of the ocean, where the heat from the sun
atmosphere. evaporates water into vapor.

WEATHER VERSUS CLIMATE - these water vapors are then

transported into the atmosphere due
 as mentioned above, the troposphere is the to rising air currents where they form
layer in which all weather phenomena occur. clouds.
the study of weather phenomena is called
meteorology. - colder temperatures in the
atmosphere encourage clouds to
condense and precipitate.

- precipitation reaches the surface of

the earth and flows down slopes as
runoff. some of the water seeps into the
ground and replenishes the groundwater
in aquifers (underground freshwater
reservoirs).

 eventually, all rivers and streams arrive at their

ultimate destination, the ocean, and the cycle
repeats.

 indeed, the hydrological cycle is an

important system upon which all of the
 weather earth’s residents depend on.
o refers to the conditions of the atmosphere in
a region over a short period of time
CLOUD FORMATION

 climate
o on the other hand, is the long-term behavior
of the atmosphere over a region.

 meteorologists use humidity, air pressure,

temperature, wind, and other factors in order
to gain a better understanding of weather and
climate in a region.

 the hydrological cycle

water is inexplicably tied to a lot of earth processes,
including processes in the atmosphere.
 clouds
 water goes through a constant journey of o are one of the easily observable indicators
evaporation and condensation called the of weather conditions.
hydrological cycle or water cycle that is o clouds start out when water vapor in the air
primarily driven by the radiation from the sun. changes to liquid in a process called
regardless of what we can observe on the condensation and form around a “cloud
earth’s surface, the hydrological cycle occurs seed” or condensation nuclei (aerosols).
continuously for millions of years above, on, soon, a cloud is formed from millions of
and below the ground. tiny cloud droplets.
- although the water cycle does not have
a starting point, we can start in the
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 there are different types of clouds that are right in the northern hemisphere and to the
classified according to form and height. based left in the southern hemisphere.
on height, there are low clouds (0-2000 m),
middle clouds (2000-6000 m), and high clouds  friction
(over 6000 m). o friction with the earth’s surface is caused by
the terrain the winds encounter. this could
THERE ARE THREE MAIN TYPES OF CLOUDS include mountains, hills, forests, and even
BASED ON THE FORM man-made structures that hinder the flow of
wind.
 cirrus clouds
o (from latin word cirrus meaning “lock of OTHER TYPES OF WEATHER PHENOMENA
hair”). these are thin, wispy, and white
clouds that resemble hair.  typhoons, hurricanes, and cyclones
 stratus clouds o these refer to the same thing: areas of low
o (from latin word stratum meaning “layer”). pressure that form over oceans that are
these are thin layers of clouds that cover characterized by a spiral movement of viral
extensive portions of the sky. winds. the only difference between them is
 cumulus clouds where they formed
o (from latin word cumulo meaning “a heap”).
these are big, cotton candy-looking clouds o typhoons are storms that form in the
that can stack vertically in a tower-like western pacific.
manner.
o hurricanes are storms that form in the
WIND FORMATION atlantic ocean and eastern pacific,

 wind o while cyclones form over the south pacific

o is generated when air flows from regions of and the indian ocean.
high pressure to regions of low pressure
caused by the unequal heating of the  thunderstorms
earth’s surface. o these are associated with cumulonimbus
clouds, heavy rainfall, thunder, lightning,
IT IS CONTROLLED BY THE FOLLOWING and sometimes tornadoes.
FACTORS
o they are caused by the upward movement
 pressure gradient force of air that is moist and warm. lightning is
o physics tells us that when an object caused by the electric charge that results
encounters an unbalanced force in one from the collision of ice crystals (cloud
direction, it will accelerate in the same droplets) in the air.
direction.
o this is what happens when there are  tornadoes
horizontal pressure differences in the air. o these are columns of violently spinning air
this variation in air pressure is the driving that extend downwards from cumulonimbus
force of the wind. clouds. most tornadoes are short-lived but
can still cause extensive damage to
 Coriolis effect property, nature, and life along their path.
o when the wind moves, it does not go in a
straight line. it is deflected from its original  precipitation
path due to the earth’s rotation in a o precipitation occurs when any form of water
phenomenon called the coriolis effect. particles descend from the atmosphere
o the earth spins in a counterclockwise towards the earth’s surface.
direction and so, all free-moving objects
(including the wind) are deflected to the o the most common form of precipitation is
rain (water droplets). other types of
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precipitation can include sleet (pellets of
ice), hail (lumps of ice), snow (ice crystals),
and drizzle (very fine water droplets).

 el niño
o this is a weather pattern that affects
countries near the southern pacific ocean.

o during normal conditions, wind along the

equator pushes warm surface water near
south america towards the western pacific
countries (such as indonesia, philippines,
etc.). the warm surface water is soon
replaced by cooler water from underneath.

o however, during el niño, warm water from

the western pacific flows instead towards
south america and up north towards the
western portion of north america. this
phenomenon induces changes in weather
patterns, marine fisheries, and ocean
conditions.

o el niño is part of a weather cycle called el

niño-southern oscillation (enso) and is
known as the warm phase of enso. la
niña, the cold phase, can be considered as
the opposite of el niño.

 the philippine atmospheric, geophysical, and

astronomical services administration
(pagasa) is the authority on all meteorological,
climatological, and astronomical phenomena
related to the philippines. as seen on the news,
pagasa
- is responsible for monitoring tropical
cyclone activity within the philippine area
of responsibility (par).

DRED LUVS RJ