Earth Science and Science classes

What is Earth Science? Six Spheres of the Earth.

Earth’s Place in the Universe: Milky Way Galaxy. Solar System. The Sun. The Moon. Search for Earth-like exoplanets in the Universe.

Planet Earth: orbit, axis, tilt; poles; equator, tropics, polar circles; day and night; seasons; solstices and equinoxes. The Globe and coordinates.

Earth’s Remarkable (Sur)Face: natural wonders of the World.

Internal structure of the Earth: core, mantle, crust; Earth’s composition.

Lithosphere: tectonic plates, continental drift, types of the plate boundaries; geologic processes; landscape formation.

Volcano: parts, types; distribution around the world; eruption; volcanic landforms; hot spot volcanism.

Earthquakes: magnitude, distribution; seismic waves, seismogram; greatest earthquakes; earthquake hazards, tsunami.

Hydrosphere: hydrologic cycle; fresh water (rivers, streams, lakes, wetlands); groundwater (aquifers); saltwater (seas, waves, tides).

Cryosphere: frozen water (glaciers, permafrost, icebergs); Ice Age.

The World Ocean: ocean floor, depth, temperature, salinity; currents, global ocean circulation (conveyor belt, overturning); Gulf Stream.

Atmosphere: layers, temperature, air pressure and density; atmospheric gases; evolution of the Earth’s atmosphere.

What is weather? Air masses and atmospheric fronts; wind (Wind Rose, global and local winds, jet stream); clouds (formation, floating condition); precipitation; weather forecast; severe weather (thunderstorms, tropical cyclones, winter storms).

Tornado: formation, classification, damage; historical examples.

Hurricane: origin, structure, path, classification; storm surge; greatest hurricanes.

Magnetosphere: Earth’s magnetic field; magnetic poles; solar wind; Aurora Borealis (Northern Lights).

Observation: how do our five senses work?

Measurement: the history of measurements; units of measurement; concept of measurement accuracy/precision/bias; Imperial/US customary Systems of Measurement; Metric System and International System of Units.

Math for Science: scientific notation; conversion of units; orders of magnitude.

Matter in Physics: atoms; physical properties of matter; mass, volume, density, temperature; states of matter (solid, liquid, gas and plasma).

Matter in Chemistry: chemical elements, compounds, mixtures; inorganic and organic molecules.

Forces of Nature: gravitational vs electromagnetic.

Energy: forms of energy, energy transformation and conservation.

Time: the fourth dimension.

Change of matter: phase transitions and chemical reactions.

What is life? The cell (discovery, diversity, general cell types, major organelles in plant and animal cells); biological macromolecules (lipids, sugars, proteins, DNA); gene, genome, genetic code.

What is an atom? Concept of a model in science; discovery of electron, nucleus, proton; atomic models; modern view of the atom; Periodic Table of Elements explained.

Nuclear reactions: isotopes, radioactivity, background radiation; nuclear fusion, nucleosynthesis; nuclear fission, nuclear chain reaction, Manhattan Project, atomic bomb; nuclear power.

Waves: vibration; wave parameters (amplitude, wavelength, frequency), types of waves; natural wave phenomena.

Sound waves: properties and behavior of sound; pitch and loudness; echo and echolocation.

Light waves: observed properties and behavior of light; famous experiments; modern concept; visible, infrared and ultraviolet light; electromagnetic spectrum; light sources; Sun spectrum.

Light meets matter: transmission, refraction, dispersion, reflection, absorption, scattering of light; apparent colors of objects; color vision.

Space Science: how to study Cosmos?

Solar System: architecture, origin, evolution; minor members of the Solar System family (asteroids, meteoroids, comets).

Stars: properties, structure, and evolution of stars in general; discovery of exoplanets.

Galaxies and black holes.

Space missions: past, present, future.