Burke, Kevin C. Department of Geosciences, University of Houston, Houston, Texas.
Last reviewed:November 2016
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- Divisions of the earth sciences
- Evolving mission of the earth sciences
- Additional Readings
The sciences that attempt to understand the origins, evolution, and behavior of the Earth in a broad context, including its place in the solar system and the universe. Many of the advances in the earth sciences have resulted from the greatly improved ability to measure and analyze the complex interactions over time of the component parts of the Earth, including the atmosphere, the biosphere, the hydrosphere, the lithosphere, and the cryosphere (see illustration). Thus, the earth sciences are highly interdisciplinary. They include the disciplines of geophysics, geochemistry, and geology, among others.
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