Contents 



7 INTRODUCTION 1 



Earth and Natural History Orientation 



The Organization of the Universe 1 



Distances 2 



Galaxy Organization 2 

 Star and Planet Life History 3 



Star and Planet Formation 3 



Early Earth Development 3 



Star Death 5 

 The Solar System 5 



Life on Other Planets 5 



The Moon 7 



Earth and Sun 7 



Earth Features 8 



2 METEOROLOGY AND CLIMATOLOGY 10 



The Atmosphere, Weather, and Climate 



The Atmosphere lU 



The Atmospheric Cycle 10 



Atmospheric Gases 1 1 



Atmospheric Zonation 1 1 



Auroras 12 



Sky Colors 12 



Atmospheric Temperature 12 



Effects of Temperature Variations 13 



Moisture 14 



Wind 14 



Clouds 15 

 Weather and Climate 18 



Pressure Areas 18 



Air Masses 19 



Precipitation 21 



Storms 23 



Climate and Geography 23 



Climate Production 25 



Past Climates 26 



O OCEANOGRAPHY 27 



The Oceans, Their Structures and Features 



Ocean Waters 27 



Properties of Water 27 



Temperature 28 



Salinity 29 



Pressure 29 

 Ocean-Floor Topography 29 



Deep-Sea Floor 29 



Continental Shelf 30 



Continental Slope 30 

 Currents 31 



Deep-Water Upwelling 32 

 Tides 33 

 Waves 34 



Tidal Waves 34 



Waves and Shore 35 



Shore Deposits 35 



Rip Currents 36 



4 GEOMORPHOLOGY 38 



Land Forms, Their Deformation and Formation 



Erosion 38 



Erosion Cycle 38 



Weathering 40 



Water 41 



Plains and Elevations 45 



Glaciation 49 



Waves 52 



Wind 55 



Organism Activities 56 



Deposition and L'nconformity 58 

 Constructional Land Forms 58 



V'ulcanism 58 



Diastrophism 61 

 Identification of Land Forms 66 



Morphogenic Regions 66 



Importance of Identification 66 



5 PETROLOGY AND PEDOLOGY 

 Rocks and Soils 



Minerals and Rocks 68 



Rock-Forming Minerals 69 



Rock Types 70 

 Igneous Rocks 70 



68 



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