Hydrosphere and Biosphere | Difference

Key Concepts

• Earth
• Geosphere
• Hydrosphere
• Atmosphere
• Biosphere

Interaction between Hydrosphere and Biosphere

Introduction

Earth is the place where we live. The planet Earth is made of sub-systems called spheres. The sub-systems are called spheres. There are four spheres of Earth. They are – geosphere (land), hydrosphere (water), atmosphere (air) and biosphere (living things). 

Interactions between spheres

All the spheres of the Earth interact with each other. Earth’s spheres do not work individually. The action of one sphere affects the other sphere. In this topic, we will discuss the interaction between the hydrosphere and the other three spheres(geosphere, biosphere and atmosphere). These interactions are shown with the help of the water cycle, or in other words, these interactions itself are known as the water cycle. 

Hydrosphere:  

Hydro means water, and sphere means circle or cycle. The water cycle is a hydrosphere. Water circulates from land to the atmosphere and then returns to Earth in the form of rain, snow, or hail. 97% of the Earth’s water is present in the oceans. It is salty water. 2% is fresh-water that we drink, and 1% is in the form of glaciers. 

Biosphere: 

Bio means life. In the biosphere, the biotic and abiotic elements are present. Biotic factors are plants and animals. Abiotic factors are soil, atmosphere and hydrosphere. Biotic and abiotic factors are essential for the survival of living things. To make the survival of living things comfortable, all the spheres interact with each other. 

Earth’s spheres interact with each other in many ways. For example, fishes swim in the water. Here fishes are the biosphere, and water is the hydrosphere. Water flows through soil particles. Soil is the geosphere and water is the hydrosphere. We can see that spheres are very closely connected, forming a network. Hence any change in any one of the Earth’s sphere results in a change in other spheres. Such type of changes that takes place in an ecosystem is called events.  

This relationship between an event and a sphere is known as interaction. Interactions also take place between the spheres; for example, a change in the atmosphere can cause a change in the lithosphere, biosphere or hydrosphere, and vice versa. 

Interaction of hydrosphere with biosphere  

In the interaction between the biosphere and the hydrosphere, the biosphere requires water to drink (for animals) and for the growth of plants. The water is provided by the hydrosphere. This interaction between the hydrosphere and biosphere helps life on Earth to be more sustainable. 

 Another example of interaction between the biosphere and hydrosphere is the water cycle. Due to the water cycle, the amount of water remains almost the same on Earth. When water evaporates, it goes into the atmosphere and condenses and forms clouds. When the water droplets become more in clouds, it falls on the ground in the form of rain, snow or hail. This interaction between the lithosphere and atmosphere helps in the production of sufficient food to eat and water for drinking. The interaction between the atmosphere and the biosphere also helps in the production of oxygen by photosynthesis. 

Water bodies can affect changes in global weather and temperature: 

Large water bodies like oceans absorb and release heat very slowly (water cycle). Whereas heating and cooling of land is a fast process. This results in the difference in temperature during the day and at night on land and near by water bodies, i.e., generally on land, it is hot during the day time and cool at the night. This heating and cooling pattern has an effect on rain and wind. Movement of ocean currents is continuous. Ocean currents transport warm water and rain from the equator in the direction of poles, whereas cold water from poles to the tropics. By doing this, ocean currents neutralize the uneven distribution of solar radiation that reaches the surface of the Earth. Without ocean currents, the temperatures would be very extreme, i.e., very hot at the equator, and very cold towards the poles. Due to these extreme temperatures, life (biosphere) on Earth would be less sustainable. 

Summary

1. There are four spheres of the Earth – geosphere (land), hydrosphere (water), atmosphere (air) and biosphere (living things).
2. The area of Earth that includes rocks, soil, mountains and minerals is called the geosphere.
3. All water of the Earth is collectively called the hydrosphere.
4. Earth’s spheres interact with each other in many ways.
5. Water bodies can affect changes in global weather and temperature.
6. Ocean currents neutralize the uneven distribution of solar radiation that reaches the surface of the Earth.