The geographic envelope is an integral continuous near-surface part of the Earth, within which there is an intense interaction of four components: the lithosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere and biosphere (living matter). This is the most complex and diverse material system of our planet, which includes the entire hydrosphere, the lower atmosphere (troposphere), the upper part of the lithosphere and living organisms inhabiting them. The spatial structure of the geographic envelope is three-dimensional and spherical. This is a zone of active interaction of natural components, in which the greatest manifestation of physical and geographical processes and phenomena is observed.

The boundaries of the geographic envelope are indistinct. Up and down from the earth's surface, the interaction of the components gradually weakens, and then completely disappears. Therefore, scientists draw the boundaries of the geographic envelope in different ways. The upper boundary is often taken to be the ozone layer located at an altitude of 25 km, where most of the ultraviolet rays that have a detrimental effect on living organisms are retained. However, some researchers conduct it along the upper border of the troposphere, which interacts most actively with the earth's surface. The bottom of the weathering crust with a thickness of up to 1 km is usually taken as the lower boundary on land, and in the ocean, the ocean floor.

The concept of the geographic envelope as a special natural formation was formulated at the beginning of the 20th century. A.A. Grigoriev and S.V. Kalesnik. They revealed the main features of the geographic envelope: 1) the complexity of the composition and the diversity of the state of matter; 2) the course of all physical and geographical processes due to solar (space) and internal (telluric) energy; 3) transformation and partial conservation of all types of energy entering it; 4) the concentration of life and the presence of human society; 5) the presence of a substance in three states of aggregation.

The geographic envelope consists of structural parts - components. These are rocks, water, air, plants, animals and soil. They differ in physical state (solid, liquid, gaseous), level of organization (inanimate, living, bio-inert), chemical composition, activity (inert - rocks, soil, mobile - water, air, active - living matter).

The geographic envelope has a vertical structure made up of individual spheres. The lower layer is composed of dense matter of the lithosphere, while the upper ones are represented by the lighter matter of the hydrosphere and atmosphere. This structure is the result of the differentiation of matter with the release of dense matter in the center of the Earth, and lighter matter at the periphery. The vertical differentiation of the geographic envelope served as the basis for F.N. Milkov to distinguish within it a landscape sphere - a thin layer (up to 300 m), where contact and active interaction of the earth's crust, atmosphere and hydrosphere occurs.

The geographic envelope in the horizontal direction is divided into separate natural complexes, which is determined by the uneven distribution of heat in different parts of the earth's surface and its heterogeneity. I call natural complexes formed on land territorial, and in the ocean or other body of water - aquatic. The geographic envelope is a natural complex of the highest planetary rank. On land, it includes smaller natural complexes: continents and oceans, natural zones and such natural formations as the East European Plain, the Sahara Desert, the Amazonian Lowland, etc. physical and geographical area. It is a block of the earth's crust connected with all the other components of the complex, that is, with water, air, vegetation and fauna. This block should be sufficiently isolated from neighboring blocks and have its own morphological structure, that is, include parts of the landscape, which are facies, tracts and terrain.

Geographic envelope - the totality of all the envelopes of the Earth: lithosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere and biosphere. The total thickness of the geographic envelope is approximately 40 km (some sources say up to 100 km). It is in this shell of the Earth that there are all the necessary conditions for life.

In its development, the geographic envelope went through three main stages:

1) inorganic - before the appearance of life on Earth, at this stage the lithosphere, the primary Ocean and the primary atmosphere were formed;

2) organic - the formation and development of the biosphere, which has transformed all existing spheres of the Earth;

3) anthropogenic - the modern stage in the development of the geographic shell, when with the advent of human society, an active transformation of the geographic shell began and the emergence of a new sphere - the noosphere - the sphere of reason.

The geographic envelope, changed by human economic activity, is called the geographic environment. In the near future, the geographic envelope and the geographic environment may become synonymous.
All shells of the Earth are in close relationship with each other. The main source of all processes in the geographic envelope is the energy of the Sun, with which two most important processes are associated, which create the geographic envelope - the water cycle and the development of life.

The geographic envelope is called the largest natural complex, which is characterized by integrity (due to the circulation of substances and energy), stability, rhythm (daily, annual, long-term rhythms), hierarchy and zonality (natural and climatic zones, natural zones and altitudinal zonality).

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The geographic envelope, its constituent parts, the relationship between them

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Geography is the science of the internal and external structure of the Earth, which studies the nature of all continents and oceans. The main objects of study are various geospheres and geosystems.

Introduction

The geographic shell or GO is one of the basic concepts of geography as a science, introduced into circulation at the beginning of the 20th century. It denotes the shell of the entire Earth, a special natural system. The geographic shell of the Earth is called an integral and continuous shell, consisting of several parts that interact with each other, penetrate each other, constantly exchange substances and energy with each other.

Fig 1. Geographic shell of the Earth

There are similar terms, with narrow meanings, used in the writings of European scholars. But they do not denote a natural system, only a set of natural and social phenomena.

Stages of development

The geographic shell of the earth has gone through a number of specific stages in its development and formation:

  • geological (prebiogenic)- the first stage of formation, which began about 4.5 billion years ago (lasted about 3 billion years);
  • biological- the second stage, which began about 600 million years ago;
  • anthropogenic (modern)- a stage that continues to this day, which began about 40 thousand years ago, when mankind began to exert a noticeable influence on nature.

The composition of the geographic shell of the Earth

Geographic envelope- this is a system of the planet, which, as you know, has the shape of a ball, flattened on both sides by the caps of the poles, with a length of the equator of more than 40 t km. GO has a certain structure. It consists of interconnected environments.

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Some experts divide HE into four areas (which, in turn, are also divided):

  • atmosphere;
  • lithosphere;
  • hydrosphere;
  • biosphere.

The structure of the geographic envelope is in any case not arbitrary. It has clear boundaries.

Upper and lower bounds

In the entire structure of the geographic envelope and geographic environments, a clear zoning can be traced.

The law of geographic zoning provides not only for the division of the entire shell into spheres and environments, but also for the division into natural zones of land and oceans. Interestingly, this division is regularly repeated in both hemispheres.

Zoning is due to the nature of the spread of the Sun's energy across latitudes and the intensity of moisture (different in different hemispheres, continents).

Naturally, you can define the upper boundary of the geographic envelope and the lower one. Upper bound located at an altitude of 25 km, and bottom line the geographic envelope runs at a level of 6 km under the oceans and at a level of 30-50 km on the continents. Although, it should be noted that the lower limit is conditional and there are still disputes over its setting.

Even if we take the upper boundary in the region of 25 km, and the lower one in the region of 50 km, then, in comparison with the overall dimensions of the Earth, we get something like a very thin film that covers the planet and protects it.

Basic laws and properties of the geographic envelope

Within these boundaries of the geographic envelope, the basic laws and properties operate that characterize and determine it.

  • Interpenetration of components or intra-component movement- the main property (there are two types of intra-component movement of substances - horizontal and vertical; they do not contradict and do not interfere with each other, although the speed of movement of components is different in different structural parts of the HE).
  • Geographic zoning- the basic Law.
  • Rhythm- the frequency of occurrence of all natural phenomena (daily, annual).
  • The unity of all parts of the geographic envelope due to their close relationship.

Characteristics of the Earth's shells included in GO

Atmosphere

The atmosphere is important for keeping warm and thus for life on the planet. It also protects all living things from ultraviolet radiation, affects soil formation and climate.

The size of this shell is from 8 km to 1 ton km (or more) in height. It includes:

  • gases (nitrogen, oxygen, argon, carbon dioxide, ozone, helium, hydrogen, inert gases);
  • dust;
  • water vapor.

The atmosphere, in turn, is divided into several interconnected layers. Their characteristics are presented in the table.

All shells of the earth are similar. For example, they contain all types of aggregate states of substances: solid, liquid, gaseous.

Fig 2. The structure of the atmosphere

Lithosphere

The hard shell of the earth, the earth's crust. It has several layers, which are characterized by different thickness, thickness, density, composition:

  • upper lithospheric layer;
  • sigmatic membrane;
  • semi-metallic or ore shell.

The limiting depth of the lithosphere is 2900 km.

What does the lithosphere consist of? From solids: basalt, magnesium, cobalt, iron and others.

Hydrosphere

The hydrosphere is made up of all the waters of the Earth (oceans, seas, rivers, lakes, swamps, glaciers and even underground waters). It is located on the surface of the Earth and occupies more than 70% of the space. Interestingly, there is a theory according to which there are large reserves of water in the thickness of the earth's crust.

There are two types of water: salt water and fresh water. As a result of interaction with the atmosphere, during condensation, the salt evaporates, thereby providing the land with fresh water.

Fig 3. Earth's hydrosphere (view of the oceans from space)

Biosphere

The biosphere is the most "living" shell of the earth. It includes the entire hydrosphere, lower atmosphere, land surface and upper lithospheric layer. It is interesting that living organisms that populate the biosphere are responsible for the accumulation and distribution of solar energy, for the migration processes of chemicals in the soil, for gas exchange, for redox reactions. We can say that the atmosphere exists only thanks to living organisms.

Fig 4. Components of the Earth's biosphere

Examples of interaction of environments (shells) of the Earth

There are a lot of examples of interaction between environments.

  • During the evaporation of water from the surface of rivers, lakes, seas and oceans, water enters the atmosphere.
  • Air and water, penetrating through the soil into the depths of the lithosphere, makes it possible for vegetation to rise.
  • Vegetation provides photosynthesis by enriching the atmosphere with oxygen and absorbing carbon dioxide.
  • From the surface of the earth and oceans, the upper layers of the atmosphere are heated, creating a climate that supports life.
  • Living organisms, when they die, form the soil.

What have we learned?

The concept of "geographic envelope" is controversial, the definition of the term is rather complicated, but, despite the fact that its use is periodically criticized, it is still used. In the 7th grade geography lessons, the structure of the geographic envelope is analyzed in detail, the complex process of interaction of environments is briefly described, it is explained that the geographic envelope is the object of study of geography and industrial sciences.

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Advances in seismology have given mankind a more detailed knowledge of the Earth and the layers of which it is composed. Each layer has its own properties, composition and characteristics that affect the main processes taking place on the planet. The composition, structure and properties of the geographic envelope are determined by its main components.

Representations of the Earth at different times

Since ancient times, people have sought to understand the formation and composition of the Earth. The earliest assumptions were purely unscientific, in the form of myths or religious fables involving the gods. During the period of antiquity and the Middle Ages, several theories arose about the origin of the planet and its proper composition. The most ancient theories represented the earth as a flat sphere or cube. Already in the 6th century BC, Greek philosophers began to argue that the earth is actually round and contains minerals and metals. In the 16th century, it was suggested that the Earth consists of concentric spheres and is hollow inside. In the early 19th century, mining and the industrial revolution fueled the rapid development of geosciences. It was found that the rock formations were arranged in the order of their formation in time. Simultaneously, geologists and naturalists began to understand that the age of a fossil can be determined from a geological point of view.

Study of the chemical and geological composition

The structure and properties of the geographic envelope differs from the rest of the layers in chemical and geological composition, and there are also huge differences in temperature and pressure. The current scientific understanding of the internal structure of the Earth is based on inferences made using seismic monitoring along with measurements of gravitational and magnetic fields. By the early 20th century, the development of radiometric dating, which is used to determine the age of minerals and rocks, made it possible to obtain more accurate data about the true, which is approximately 4-4.5 billion years old. The development of modern methods for the extraction of minerals and precious metals, as well as the growing attention to the importance of minerals and their natural distribution, have also helped to stimulate the development of modern geology, including knowledge of which layers make up the geographic shell of the earth.

The structure and properties of the geographic envelope

The geosphere includes the hydrosphere, sinking about ten kilometers above sea level, the earth's crust and part of the atmosphere, extending up to 30 kilometers in height. The largest shell distance varies within forty kilometers. This layer is affected by both terrestrial and space processes. Substances occur in 3 physical states, and can consist of the smallest elementary particles such as atoms, ions and molecules, and also include many additional multicomponent structures. The structure of the geographic envelope, as a rule, is considered in the form of a community of natural and social phenomena. The components of the geographic envelope are presented in the form of rocks in the earth's crust, air, water, soil, and biogeocenoses.

Characteristic features of the geosphere

The structure and properties of the geographic envelope imply an important set of characteristics. These include: integrity, circulation of matter, rhythm and constant development.

  1. Integrity is determined by the results of the incessant exchange of substances and energy, and the combination of all the components unites them into one material whole, where the transformation of any of the links can lead to global changes in all the others.
  2. The geographic envelope is characterized by the presence of a cyclical circulation of matter, for example, atmospheric circulation and oceanic surface currents. More complex processes are accompanied by a change in the aggregate composition of matter. In other cycles, there is a chemical transformation of matter or the so-called biological cycle.
  3. Another feature of the shell is its rhythm, that is, the repetition of various processes and phenomena in time. This is due largely to the will of astronomical and geological forces. There are 24-hour rhythms (change of day and night), annual rhythms rhythms that occur over the course of a century (for example, 30-year cycles in which there are fluctuations in climate, glaciers, lake levels and river volumes). There are even rhythms that have occurred over the centuries (for example, the alternation of a cool and humid climate phase with a hot and dry phase, occurring once every 1800-1900 years). Geological rhythms can last from 200 to 240 million years, and so on.
  4. The structure and properties of the geographic envelope are directly related to the continuity of development.

Continuous development

There are some results and characteristics of continuous development. First, there is a local division of continents, oceans, and seabed. This delineation is influenced by the spatial features of the geographic structure, including geographic and altitudinal zoning. Secondly, there is a polar asymmetry, which manifests itself in the presence of significant differences between the Northern and Southern hemispheres.

This is manifested, for example, in the distribution of continents and oceans, climatic zones, the composition of flora and fauna, types and forms of reliefs and landscapes. Third, development in the geosphere is inextricably linked with spatial and natural heterogeneity. This ultimately leads to the fact that different levels of the evolutionary process can be observed simultaneously in different regions. For example, the ancient ice age began and ended at different times in different parts of the earth. In certain natural areas, the climate becomes more humid, while in others, the opposite is true.

Lithosphere

The structure of the geographic envelope includes such a component as the lithosphere. It is the solid, outer part of the earth, extending to a depth of about 100 kilometers. This layer includes the crust and the upper part of the mantle. The strongest and hardest layer of the Earth is associated with such a concept as tectonic activity. The lithosphere is divided into 15 large North American, Caribbean, South American, Scottish, Antarctic, Eurasian, Arabian, African, Indian, Philippine, Australian, Pacific, Juan de Fuca, Coconut and Nazca. The composition of the geographic shell of the Earth in these areas is characterized by the presence of various types of rocks of the lithospheric crust and mantle. The lithospheric crust is characterized by continental gneiss and oceanic gabbro. Below this boundary, in the upper layers of the mantle, peridotite occurs; the rocks are mainly composed of the minerals olivine and pyroxene.

Interaction of components

The geographic envelope includes four natural geospheres: lithosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, and biosphere. Water evaporates from the seas and oceans, winds move air currents to land, precipitation is formed and falls there, which returns to the world's oceans in various ways. The biological cycle of the plant kingdom is the transformation of inorganics into organic matter. After the death of living organisms, organic substances return to the earth's crust, gradually transforming into inorganic ones.


The most important properties

Geographic envelope properties:

  1. The ability to accumulate and convert the energy of sunlight.
  2. Availability of free energy required for a wide variety of natural processes.
  3. Unique ability to produce biodiversity and serve as a natural habitat for life.
  4. The properties of the geographic envelope include a huge variety of chemical elements.
  5. Energy comes both from space and from the deep bowels of the earth.

The uniqueness of the geographic envelope lies in the fact that organic life arose at the junction of the lithosphere, atmosphere and hydrosphere. It was here that the entire human society appeared and is still developing, using the necessary resources for its life. The geographic envelope covers the entire planet, therefore it is called the planetary complex, which includes rocks in the earth's crust, air and water, soil and enormous biological diversity.

The geographic shell of our planet includes four components: the hydrosphere and biosphere in full, and the atmosphere and lithosphere - in part. At the same time, they do not function purely autonomously, but constantly interact. Parts of these systems are the components of the geographic envelope: soil, plants, water, minerals, animals, etc.

Natural complexes

All components that are parts of the geographic envelope are horizontally divided into certain complexes. These are territories that are homogeneous not only in the modern composition of natural components, but also in the historical component. They have the same composition of waters (both above- and underground), geological part, biocenosis.

Rice. 1. Components of the geographic envelope.

Natural complexes are formed due to the interaction of their constituent parts in the same way as the geographic envelope - due to the mutual influence of its components.

Natural complexes are not the same in size and today have already been significantly changed due to
for the strong influence of the anthropogenic factor.

Linking Geographic Shell Components

Thanks to the cycles of matter and energy, which are described in the 7th grade textbook, the individual components of the geographic envelope are connected enough to form a whole. There are many different cycles (atmospheric, earth's crust, etc.), but the most important is the water cycle. Due to the fact that such an amazing substance as water is capable of passing into different states, it brings together all the components of the natural shell and ensures their existence.

Fig 2. Water cycle.

The biological cycle is also important, when mineral substances become part of living organisms, then again returning to the mineral state. This is an iterative process.

The tropospheric air cycle ensures the survival of the living components of the geographic envelope, and the hydrosphere also participates in it.

The rate of its flow depends on the region: it occurs fastest at the equator, and slowest in the polar regions.

Rice. 3. The circulation of air.

Living and non-living components of the geographic envelope

Living components- these are the components of the biosphere, that is, flora and fauna, as well as bacteria and fungi. They are the ones who participate in the biological cycle.

Water, air, minerals- these are inanimate components that are included in the litho-, atmosphere and hydrospheres of the Earth.

What have we learned?

That the components that make up the geographic shell of our planet can be alive and inanimate, but they are all part of the earthly spheres and, accordingly, certain cycles that ensure universal interaction. These components are combined into historically formed natural complexes that change under the influence of man. Such complexes exist due to the interaction of their parts.

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