Systems, The Plate Tectonic System, And Geodynamo Systems

Minji Kim (J8-170007)

PEAK Earth Science

10/23/2017

In what general ways are the climate system, the plate tectonic system, and the geodynamo system similar? In what ways are they different?

The climate system refers to all the components of earth, which include the atmosphere, cryosphere, hydrosphere, lithosphere, and biosphere. The plate tectonics system describes the volcanic eruptions, formation of mountains and oceanic crusts, and every other changes to the lithosphere of the Earth. The geodynamo system is involved in creating a magnetic field throughout Earth (Humblet).

One similarity between these three systems would be that they all are part of the Earth’s natural system that continuously impact and interact with each other (Humblet).

Plate tectonics allows for volcanoes, new oceanic crusts, and continents to move. Some obvious consequences of the absence of plate tectonics would include: flat land from constant erosion, a possibility of no continents, and less varieties of organisms living on Earth. However, plate tectonics have many other not-so-obvious functions as well. The consequences due to the absence of two of these functions will be explored below.

One major function of plate tectonics is maintaining the temperature on Earth. Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas where too much or too less CO2 would make Earth too hot or too cold for life. Plate tectonics allow for subduction for happen, which pulls some of the CO2 from the surface of the Earth into the mantle. Plate tectonics also expose new minerals to the surface, which chemically react with the CO2 gas melted in rainwater and become absorbed back into the Earth. Volcanoes send CO2 back into the atmosphere (Fuentes). This CO2 cycle maintains the Earth’s temperature for life to exist in ideal conditions. Without tectonics, Earth will become frigid and the natural cycle of life will have to undergo a major

Some advantages to orbital spacecrafts would be that it would only take several weeks or months to explore the whole planet. Also, as the spacecraft would continuously orbit around the planet, the machine will be able to attain multiple versions of information from the same areas (Cheprasov). This will allow for less random errors in data collected and produce information that would be more accurate (Smithsonian).

Although the orbital spacecraft can create images of the planet, they will not be able to produce images of the planet in microscopic levels. They will also not be able to conduct actual experiments with materials from the planet (Cheprasov).

There are many advantages to spacecrafts that can land and move around on the surface. Those that land on the surface can take photos and can collect actual samples of the soil or the air. Actual observation and physical conduction of experimentation on the planet is possible, by the images and samples collected straight by the controlled spacecraft