The Geosphere is associated with solid portions of the Earth. It includes the continental and oceanic crust and all other layers of the Earth's interior.  This includes all rocks, sediments and soils, surface landforms and the processes that shape the Earth's surface.

The purpose of this activity is for students to create a desktop soil profile based on the biome region of the United States where your school is located.

Students categorize causes, effects, and responses to volcanic hazards through an Earth system perspective. They use remotely sensed images to examine the visible effects of the eruption of Mount St. Helens in 1980 and identify a buffer zone for safer locations for development.

Students will review the NASA Space Place video, "Tectonic Forces", and answer questions about tectonic plates.

Compare pictures of different volcanoes. Then visit NASA's Space Place to learn about volcanoes and answer questions about volcanic eruptions.

Students examine satellite images of an island before and after a volcanic eruption to determine the impact of the eruption.

In this activity, students investigate three different soil samples with varying moisture content. They use a soil moisture probe to determine the percentage (by volume) of water in each of the soil samples.

Review this page to learn about the background of volcanoes and their eruptions.

Students model Earth's tectonic plate movement and explore the relationship between these movements and different types of volcanoes.

Watch NASA videos about aerosols and volcanic ash.