Earth and Space Science
Earth and Space Science covers Earth materials, processes, water and weather, and observable astronomy.
Core content
- Earth’s structure: Crust, mantle, liquid outer core, solid inner core. Plate motions at convergent, divergent, and transform boundaries cause earthquakes, volcanoes, and mountain building.
- Rocks and weathering: Igneous rocks form from cooling magma or lava; sedimentary rocks from compacted and cemented sediments; metamorphic rocks from heat and pressure. Weathering breaks rock down; erosion transports sediment; deposition lays it down.
- Water and weather: The water cycle includes evaporation, transpiration, condensation, precipitation, runoff, and infiltration. Weather is short-term atmospheric conditions; climate is long-term patterns.
- Earth in space: Rotation on Earth’s axis causes day and night. Revolution around the Sun plus a 23.5° axial tilt causes seasons. Moon phases result from the Moon’s changing orbital position relative to Earth and the Sun.
Worked example
Why is July summer in the Northern Hemisphere? Earth is actually farther from the Sun then. The cause is axial tilt: the Northern Hemisphere tilts toward the Sun, so sunlight strikes more directly and days are longer. More concentrated energy and longer heating time raise temperatures. Distance is not the explanation.
Traps
- Explaining seasons by distance from the Sun.
- Saying Moon phases are caused by Earth’s shadow; that describes lunar eclipses.
- Confusing rotation with revolution.
- Mixing up weathering, erosion, and deposition.