Availabilities:
2024 unit offering information will be available in November 2023
Unit description
Introduces the formation of the earth over geological time and the complex interacting systems that provide a basis for life on earth, including the lithosphere, hydrosphere and atmosphere. Considers the recent changes induced by human activities and impacts on a global scale.
Unit content
1. The Earth: Introduction to earth system science. The solar system and formation of the earth. Earth materials, minerals, rocks, inorganic and organic material, and geologic time.
2. Geosphere: Earth’s interior, plate tectonics, continents and shaping of terrestrial systems. Earthquakes, volcanoes. The rock cycle, weathering, erosion, deposition, and geologic records.
3. Hydrosphere: Hydrological cycle, ocean, seas, rivers, streams, lakes, ice, glaciers, groundwater and the atmosphere.
4. Oceans: Shaping of the ocean and the coastlines from plate tectonics, currents and waves. Deposition of sediments from terrestrial run-off and carbonate systems.
5. Atmosphere: Weather patterns and the influence from climate change, El Nino, La Nina cycle and the impacts of atmospheric cycles on ocean and terrestrial systems.
6. The Biosphere and Anthropocene: A brief overview of the living world over geologic time and its influence on the Earth system. The recent role of human influences on the atmosphere, hydrosphere, climate, ecosystems, land/soils, biodiversity, and the oceans.
Learning outcomes
Unit Learning Outcomes express learning achievement in terms of what a student should know, understand and be able to do on completion of a unit. These outcomes are aligned with the graduate attributes. The unit learning outcomes and graduate attributes are also the basis of evaluating prior learning.
| On completion of this unit, students should be able to: | |
|---|---|
| 1 | Describe the key attributes of major interacting Earth systems, including the atmosphere, hydrosphere, geosphere and biosphere. |
| 2 | Demonstrate an understanding of important earth system cycles. |
| 3 | Apply critical scientific thinking to describe how the Earth systems interact across different scales in space and time. |
| 4 | Reflect on how humans have influenced the current and future functioning of the Earth systems. |
On completion of this unit, students should be able to:
- Describe the key attributes of major interacting Earth systems, including the atmosphere, hydrosphere, geosphere and biosphere.
- Demonstrate an understanding of important earth system cycles.
- Apply critical scientific thinking to describe how the Earth systems interact across different scales in space and time.
- Reflect on how humans have influenced the current and future functioning of the Earth systems.
Teaching and assessment
Fee information
Domestic
Commonwealth Supported courses
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Fee paying courses
For postgraduate or undergraduate full fee paying courses please check Domestic Postgraduate Fees OR Domestic Undergraduate Fees
International
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