Which sphere do metals come from

The surface of the Earth is made up of tectonic plates that lie beneath both the land and oceans of our planet. The movements of these plates can build mountains or cause volcanoes to erupt. Earthquakes are more common in some parts of the world than others, because some places, like California, sit on top of the meeting point, or fault, of two plates. When those plates scrape against each other and cause an earthquake, the results can be deadly and devastating. Learn more about earthquakes with this curated collection of classroom resources.

According to the United States Geologic Survey, there are approximately 1, potentially active volcanoes worldwide. Most are located around the Pacific Ocean in what is commonly called the Ring of Fire.

A volcano is defined as an opening in the Earth's crust through which lava, ash, and gases erupt. The term also includes the cone-shaped landform built by repeated eruptions over time. Teach your students about volcanoes with this collection of engaging material. A gallery of map illustrations showing the positions of tectonic plates in the geologic past.

The mantle is the mostly-solid bulk of Earth's interior. The mantle lies between Earth's dense, super-heated core and its thin outer layer, the crust. The theory of plate tectonics revolutionized the earth sciences by explaining how the movement of geologic plates causes mountain building, volcanoes, and earthquakes.

Join our community of educators and receive the latest information on National Geographic's resources for you and your students. Skip to content. Twitter Facebook Pinterest Google Classroom. Encyclopedic Entry Vocabulary. Click below to visit our MapMaker Interactive layer displaying the lithosphere's tectonic plates.

The lithosphere is thinnest at mid-ocean ridges, where tectonic plates are tearing apart from each other. Click below to visit our high-resolution map of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. The rocky lithosphere includes part of the upper mantle and crust.

Photograph by Jennifer Plourde, MyShot. Extraterrestrial Lithospheres All terrestrial planets have lithospheres. The lithospheres of Mercury, Venus, and Mars are much thicker and more rigid than Earth's. Also called the geosphere. Media Credits The audio, illustrations, photos, and videos are credited beneath the media asset, except for promotional images, which generally link to another page that contains the media credit. Media If a media asset is downloadable, a download button appears in the corner of the media viewer.

Text Text on this page is printable and can be used according to our Terms of Service. Interactives Any interactives on this page can only be played while you are visiting our website. Related Resources. View Collection. Plate Tectonics. Earth Structure. As rocks are uplifted into mountains, they start to erode and dissolve, sending sediments and nutrients into waterways and impacting the ecosystems for living things. As climate changes , the geosphere interacts with various other parts of the Earth system.

The carbon cycle is one of several biogeochemical cycles, which all involve the geosphere, the biosphere, and other spheres of the Earth system. Cryosphere : Glaciers and ice sheets, parts of the cryosphere, have a large impact on the rocks and sediments below them. For example, the continental ice sheet moved rocks as it flowed south during the last ice age, creating Cape Cod, Long Island, hills, and lakes.

The ice is also able to have a regional effect on the elevation of land, which lifts up once the ice has melted from its surface. Water near the poles is very cold shown in dark purple , while water near the equator is very warm shown in light blue.

The differences in temperature cause water to change physical states. Extremely low temperatures like those found at the poles cause water to freeze into a solid such as a polar icecap, a glacier, or an iceberg.

Extremely high temperatures like those found at the equator cause water to evaporate into a gas. The word "hydrosphere" will be used in reference to all water in Earth's system. Biosphere The biosphere contains all the planet's living things. Within the biosphere, living things form ecological communities based on the physical surroundings of an area. These communities are referred to as biomes.

Deserts, grasslands, and tropical rainforests are three of the many types of biomes that exist within the biosphere. It is impossible to detect from space each individual organism within the biosphere.

However, biomes can be seen from space. For example, the image above distinguishes between lands covered with plants shown in shades of green and those that are not shown in brown. The word "biosphere" will be used in reference to all living things in Earth's system. Atmosphere The atmosphere contains all the air in Earth's system.

The upper portion of the atmosphere protects the organisms of the biosphere from the sun's ultraviolet radiation.