Earth science

Earth science is an all-embracing term for the sciences related to the planet Earth. Earth science may also be called geoscience. Geoscience is the study of the architecture of the earth.

It is a broader term than geology because it includes aspects of planetary science, which is part of astronomy. The Earth sciences include the study of the atmosphere, oceans and biosphere, as well as the solid earth. Typically Earth scientists will use tools from physics, chemistry, biology, chronology and mathematics to understand the Earth, and how it evolved to its current state.

If there is one fact which underlies all Earth science it is this; the Earth is an ancient planet which has been changing the whole time since its formation. The extent of the changes is much greater than people used to think.

Fields of study

The following disciplines are generally recognised as being within the geosciences:
 Geology describes the rocky parts of the Earth's crust (or lithosphere) and its historic development. Major subdisciplines are mineralogy and petrology, geochemistry, geomorphology, paleontology, Mineralogy, petrophysics, stratigraphy, structural geology, engineering geology and sedimentology.<ref
name="smith 5">Smith, Gary A. & Pun, Aurora 2006. How does the Earth work?. Pearson Prentice Hall, NJ. .</ref>
 Geophysics and Geodesy investigate the shape of the Earth, its reaction to forces and its magnetic and gravity fields. Geophysicists explore the Earth's core and mantle as well as the tectonic and seismic activity of the lithosphere.
 Soil science covers the outermost layer of the Earth's crust that is subject to soil formation processes (or pedosphere).
 Oceanography and hydrology (includes limnology) describe the marine and freshwater domains of the watery parts of the Earth (or hydrosphere). Includes Marine biology.
 Glaciology covers the icy parts of the Earth (or cryosphere).
 Atmospheric sciences cover the gaseous parts of the Earth (or atmosphere) between the surface and the exosphere (about 1000 km). Major subdisciplines are meteorology, climatology, atmospheric chemistry and physics.
 Astronomy includes the study of distant stars and galaxies to the examination of the 4.6 billion years old Earth from an astronomical point of view. It is also closely related with the study of the solar system and its planets, a subdiscipline called planetology. A more distant relative of astronomy is physical cosmology, which aims to study the Universe as a whole.
 Closely related to the earth sciences are physical geography and biology.

List of Earth science topics

Atmosphere 

 Atmospheric chemistry
 Climatology
 Meteorology
 Paleoclimatology

Biosphere 
 Biogeography
 Paleontology
 Micropaleontology

Hydrosphere 
 Hydrology
 Limnology
 Hydrogeology
 Oceanography
 Marine biology
 Paleoceanography
 Physical oceanography

Lithosphere or geosphere 
 Geology
 Environmental geology
 Historical geology
 Planetary geology
 Sedimentology
 Stratigraphy
 Structural geology
 Geography
 Physical geography
 Geochemistry
 Geomorphology
 Geophysics
 Geodynamics (see also Tectonics)
 Geomagnetics
 Seismology
 Glaciology
 Mineralogy
 Crystallography
 Petrology
 Volcanology

Pedosphere 
 Soil science

Systems 
 Environmental science
 Geography
 Gaia hypothesis

Others 
 Engineering Geology
 Geostatistics
 Geodesy

References