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The atmosphere of Earth is composed of a layer of gas mixture that surrounds the Earth's planetary surface (both lands and oceans), known collectively as air, with variable quantities of suspended aerosols and particulates (which create weather features such as clouds and hazes), all retained by Earth's gravity.
The Earth's atmosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere together hold less than 0.05% of the Earth's total mass of oxygen. Besides O 2 , additional oxygen atoms are present in various forms spread throughout the surface reservoirs in the molecules of biomass , H 2 O , CO 2 , HNO 3 , NO , NO 2 , CO , H 2 O 2 , O 3 , SO 2 , H 2 SO 4 , MgO , CaO ...
[notes 1] The hydrosphere plays an important role in the existence of the atmosphere in its present form. Oceans are important in this regard. When the Earth was formed it had only a very thin atmosphere rich in hydrogen and helium similar to the present atmosphere of Mercury. Later the gases hydrogen and helium were expelled from the atmosphere.
Earth's hydrosphere is the sum of Earth's water and its distribution. Most of Earth's hydrosphere consists of Earth's global ocean. Earth's hydrosphere also consists of water in the atmosphere and on land, including clouds, inland seas, lakes, rivers, and underground waters.
The hydrosphere is the largest reservoir for potassium, holding an estimated 552.7 x 10 12 tonnes (552.7x10 6 Tg). [2] Leaching and erosion carry 1.4 x 10 9 tonnes (1400 Tg) yr −1 of potassium in soil solution into groundwater, rivers, and oceans. [2] Some potassium in the atmosphere also enters the hydrosphere through precipitation.
The biotic compartment is the biosphere and the abiotic compartments are the atmosphere, lithosphere and hydrosphere. For example, in the carbon cycle, atmospheric carbon dioxide is absorbed by plants through photosynthesis , which converts it into organic compounds that are used by organisms for energy and growth.
It's possible for the hydrosphere to be highly distributed throughout other component spheres such as the geosphere and atmosphere. There are about 1.4 billion km of water on Earth. That includes liquid water in the ocean, lakes, and rivers. It includes frozen water in snow, ice, and glaciers, and water that's underground in soils and rocks.
The hydrosphere refers to all water on, under, and above the surface of the Earth. It includes the gaseous, liquid, and solid forms of water. Hydrospheric processes which operate across mountain belts include ocean circulation, groundwater flow, evaporation, and condensation.