Life on Planet Earth 2.

1
In our solar system, only a single planet—Earth—is teeming with millions
of species. Earth is home to countless organisms and habitat types. A habitat
is the place where an organism lives. Habitats may be terrestrial, on the
land, or aquatic, in the water. In the oceans, life ranges from colourful fish
on coral reefs to strange creatures living in the dark depths. On land, there
are cacti and rattlesnakes in the arid deserts. Enormous trees swarm with
insects in the tropical rainforests (Figure 1). Low-lying shrubs and herds of
caribou abound in the frozen Arctic. What features of Earth permit such a
diversity of life to exist?

(a) (b)

Figure 1 Earth is home to countless habitats, including (a) deserts and (b) tropical rainforests.

The Spheres of Earth

Earth is a medium-sized planet orbiting our Sun (a star) at a distance of
approximately 150 000 000 km. Viewed from space, Earth appears as a pale
blue dot (Figure 2). As you near Earth, you will notice it is surrounded
by a thin gaseous layer swirling with clouds. Finally, you will be able to
distinguish the oceans, land, and ice that cover Earth’s surface.

The Atmosphere, Lithosphere, and Hydrosphere

Earth’s mass creates a force of gravity strong enough to hold gases near its
surface. In contrast, the force of gravity of our Moon is not strong enough
to hold gases. Earth’s atmosphere is the layer of gases extending upward for
hundreds of kilometres. It is made up of about 78 % nitrogen gas and 21 % Figure 2 Earth looks like a pale blue
oxygen gas. The remaining <1 % of the atmosphere includes argon, water dot when viewed from space.
vapour, carbon dioxide, and a variety of other gases.
The atmosphere is critical to life on Earth. It acts like a blanket and atmosphere the layer of gases
surrounding Earth
moderates surface temperatures. The insulation prevents excessive heating
during the day and cooling during the night. Without an atmosphere,
Earth’s surface temperature would drop from the 15 °C average it is now
to approximately –18 °C. In addition, Earth’s atmosphere blocks some
incoming solar radiation, including most ultraviolet light, which is linked
to skin cancer. Without the atmosphere, most of Earth’s species would be
unable to survive.

NEL 2.1 Life on Planet Earth 29

6646_Sci9_ch02_pp20-37.indd 29 7/17/09 12:36:53 PM

 Scientists use a number of terms to describe Earth’s key surface
lithosphere Earth’s solid outer layer components. The lithosphere is the rocky outer shell of Earth. It consists of
the rocks and minerals that make up the mountains, ocean floors, and the
rest of Earth’s solid landscape. The lithosphere ranges from about 50 to
150 km in thickness.
hydrosphere all of Earth’s water in solid, The hydrosphere consists of all the water on, above, and below Earth’s
liquid, and gas form surface. It includes oceans, lakes, ice, groundwater, and clouds. Nearly all the
water on Earth (97 %) is contained in the oceans.

The Biosphere
biosphere the zone around Earth where Scientists use the term biosphere to describe the locations in which life can
life can exist exist within the lithosphere, atmosphere, and hydrosphere (Figure 3).
Most of the easily observed life forms exist on land and in water, but
micro-organisms exist several kilometres beneath Earth’s surface.

atmosphere

biosphere

hydrosphere lithosphere

Figure 3 Earth’s biosphere is found in

regions of the atmosphere, lithosphere,
and hydrosphere.

LEARNING TIP Earth is very large (about 12 700 km in diameter), but the biosphere is
It’s All Greek to Me very thin by comparison. All conditions required for life must be met and
Many scientific terms are derived from maintained within this thin layer of ground, water, and lower atmosphere.
Greek. Lithos means stone, atmos All living things need space, water, and nutrients to survive. However, the
means vapour, hydro means water, bio supply of these resources is limited. Ultimately, the availability of resources
means life, and sphere means ball.
places a limit on the number of individuals of a species that can survive. All
life on Earth is vying for access to these precious resources. The struggle for
resources is discussed in Section 2.7.

The Gaia Hypothesis

READING TIP In the 1960s, scientist James Lovelock advanced the Gaia hypothesis. He
Text-to-Text Connections proposed that Earth, through interactions among the biosphere, lithosphere,
Brainstorm text-to-text connections by atmosphere, and hydrosphere, behaved like a living organism. Lovelock’s
jotting down everything that comes to hypothesis suggested that Earth was capable of responding to changes in its
mind when you think about the selection environment (such as incoming sunlight) and maintaining relatively consistent
and texts you have read. You can use
a Venn diagram to list similarities and
internal conditions over long periods of time—just like a living cell.
differences between the selection and The Gaia hypothesis is not widely accepted as a rigorous scientific concept.
other texts. However, many people feel that thinking of Earth as a living thing may
encourage and promote a more caring attitude toward our planet and the life
it supports.

30 Chapter 2 • Understanding Ecosystems NEL

6646_Sci9_ch02_pp20-37.indd 30 7/17/09 12:36:56 PM

 T RY THIS A SCALE MODEL OF PLANET EARTH
SKILLS: Analyzing, Communicating SKILLS HANDBOOK
5.A.1.
To appreciate how the lithosphere, atmosphere, and hydrosphere Table 1
compare to the overall size of Earth, it is useful to consider a Feature measurement Actual distance Model distance
scale model of Earth. The diameter of Earth at the equator is thickest portion of 150 km 12.8 mm
approximately 12 700 km. Imagine a model of Earth with a lithosphere
diameter of 1 m, like a very large beach ball. Each distance of distance between 1380 km
1 mm on the model of Earth would represent a distance of Toronto and Thunder Bay
12.7 km on the true Earth. In this activity, you will create a scale average ocean depth 3.7 km
model to compare the size of Earth’s components. maximum ocean depth 10.9 km

1. Draw a table similar to Table 1 and fill in the missing values. height of Mount Everest 8.4 km
For example, the thickest portion of the lithosphere at average thickness of 1.6 km
Antarctic ice
150 km would be equivalent to 150 or 12.8 mm on
12.7 thickness of lower 20 km
our model. T/I C atmosphere
MATH TIP
To keep the model consistent, divide every value by the C. In our Earth model, all life would exist within 1 mm of the
same number. Therefore, 1 mm always equals 12.7 km. surface. Given this information, would it surprise you to
learn that many scientists consider the ocean, atmosphere,
A. Did the model distances surprise you? Which model
and biosphere to be very vulnerable to pollution and other
distances, if any, were less than you had expected?
forms of damage? A
Which, if any, were greater? A
B. Based on the same scale, the volume of Earth would be
520 L, but the volume of all the world’s oceans would be
only 640 mL. This is not enough to fill two pop cans. If this
is the case, why do you think Earth is often referred to as
the watery planet? A

IN SUMMARY
• Earth’s atmosphere is made up of about 78 % • The hydrosphere is Earth’s water in all its forms.
nitrogen gas, 21 % oxygen gas, and other gases. • The biosphere is the area where life can exist
• The atmosphere moderates surface temperatures within the lithosphere, atmosphere, and
and blocks some incoming solar radiation. hydrosphere.
• The lithosphere is Earth’s solid outer shell. • The Gaia hypothesis proposes that Earth behaves
like a living organism.

CHECK YOUR LEARNING

1. Explain how Earth’s mass is related to its ability to have an 5. If Earth is so large, why do scientists consider the biosphere
atmosphere. K/U to be fragile? Explain. K/U A
2. In what way does the presence of an atmosphere enhance 6. It can be difficult to appreciate the relationships of large
conditions for life on Earth’s surface? K/U objects such as Earth. How does using a scale model make
3. Define each of the following terms: lithosphere, atmosphere, these relationships easier to understand? T/I C
hydrosphere, and biosphere. K/U 7. What surprised you most about the physical makeup
4. Describe the ways in which Earth’s “spheres” overlap of Earth’s spheres and the relationships among them? C

each other. K/U C

NEL 2.1 Life on Planet Earth 31

6646_Sci9_ch02_pp20-37.indd 31 7/17/09 12:36:59 PM