The Earth is the planet on which we live, and it is very important to know about its physical features that in final analysis shape and influence our lives. Of the eight planets, the Earth is third from the Sun and is the only one which is known to support life. The Earth can be divided into two major sections-the continental land surface, and the oceanic bodies. The land surface covers about one-fifth of the globe's surface, the rest is occupied by the oceans. The total volume of water increases further if the water contained in rivers, lakes and other such features is added to the volume contained in the oceans.
To increase awareness of the importance of Earth sciences for the achievement of sustained development, the United Nations General Assembly declared 2007 as the "International Year of Planet Earth", though the activities actually spanned the three years 2007-2009. This book is a small contribution towards this objective.
The Planet Earth is a dynamic body. Constant changes are taking place all the time; some enormous ones occurred in the past and many imperceptible changes are going on all the time today. Since its formation about 4.6 billions years ago the continents, the oceans, and landforms have been in a state of flux-continents have drifted apart, broken up and reassembled. And the physical features of the continents and oceans themselves have undergone radical changes. Where there were seas and level spaces in the past, there are mountains, which in turn are being eroded away gradually. The crustal plates that cover the globe are moving apart fed by lavas from mid-oceanic ridges and then being consumed at the plate margins. Volcanoes and earthquakes (with consequent developments) give us some insight and clues to some of these factors that shape the Earth.
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