The Earth's spheres

Philip and Kim are having a great time at the beach. - Philip, did you know that we can divide everything in the natural world into four different categories? - Um, no. What do you mean? Kim is right. The natural world can be split into four categories, or SPHERES. Let’s take a closer look at the beach that Philip and Kim are on, and see if we can split it into the four spheres.

Now imagine there’s no water, no trees, no wind and no Kim and Philip on the beach. The only thing left is the sand and some rocks nearby. Sand, rocks, soil and landforms, like mountains and canyons, are part of the first one of the Earths’ spheres - the LITHOSPHERE. Now, let’s add water to the beach. Most of it is salty sea water, but there are also small freshwater streams that are flowing nearby.

All the water on the planet, is part of the second sphere - the HYDROSPHERE. Even the rain, water trapped underground, and the glaciers are part of it! What about the breeze that just started blowing on the beach? It’s part of the third sphere - the ATMOSPHERE. The air that we breathe and all the gases on Earth are also part of the atmosphere.

The lithosphere, hydrosphere and atmosphere are the spheres that make up the nonliving world around us. These three spheres create perfect conditions for the last sphere to be able to exist - the BIOSPHERE. The biosphere contains all living things on Earth - microorganisms, fungi, plants and animals. Together the four spheres create the magnificent natural world around us. - So yes, those are the four spheres! Our planet is complicated, but isn’t it amazing too? - Now let’s have the cake I brought!

Its layers look a bit like the spheres on top of each other, don't they?