Final #1, Energy in Earth Systems

Showing energy radiating back into space from earth, highest around equator.

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Earth is in constant need of energy to keep its ability to have life on it. Almost all of the energy that our earth needs comes from the sun. Energy hits the earths atmosphere and is absorbed into the water vapor, oceans and land, some of the energy is reflected back into space in the form of short-wave infrared wavelengths(see figure 2,3). The oceans provide the most of the energy to other parts of the world, like polar regions. For humans to harness this energy we can use both hydroelectric and solar energy collection methods; both of which are renewable. Some non-renewable resources can also be used as fuel, such as fossil fuels and U-235. Fossil fuels can be in the form of natural gas or compressed into coal. Energy is deprived from these sources by burning them. This creates waste products that some think may be the cause of climate change. The fission of some radioactive elements, like U-235, can yield large amounts of energy in the form of heat, this is then used to drive a steam powered turbine to generate electricity.(figure 4) The excess energy that the earth puts off helps protect life on earth by forming an electromagnetic field. This field is created at the earths core and shields the planet from harmful rays of energy from the sun.

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Sources:
"Using an Earth System Approach." SERC. Web. 20 Nov. 2011. <http://serc.carleton.edu/introgeo/earthsystem/index.html>.

Nordell, Bo; Bruno Gervet. Global energy accumulation and net heat emission. Retrieved 2009-12-23.

"Earth's Energy Budget." Earth's Energy Budget. Web. 22 Nov. 2011. <http://okfirst.mesonet.org/train/meteorology/EnergyBudget2.html>.