首页|A holistic perspective on Earth system science

A holistic perspective on Earth system science

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Earth system can be categorized into three parts,solid Earth system,surface Earth system,and Sun-Earth space system.These three subsystems not only have mutual transmission and coupling relationships in both energy and matter but also involve multiple scales from microscopic to macroscopic.Earth system science is characterized by its globality and unity with a holistic view and a systematic view at multiple scales in both space and time.It focuses not only on the physical,chemical and biological interactions between various geospheres but also on the properties,behaviors,processes,and mechanisms of the entire Earth and its spheres.Although significant progress has been made in the study of internal disciplines of these three subsystems,there is still insufficient understanding of their overall behavior and interactions between individuals,thus facing challenges of different types and levels.The solid Earth system is composed of the crust,mantle,and core.Existing observational techniques struggle to penetrate deep into the mantle,making direct observation and data acquisition difficult;the extreme environments within Earth,such as high temperature,high pressure,and strong magnetic fields,also pose great challenges to observational equipment and scientific experiments.The surface Earth system is an open complex mega-system,in which there are complex interactions and feedback mechanisms among its geospheres(such as atmosphere,hydrosphere,biosphere,pedosphere and lithosphere),leading to difficulties in understanding of its overall behavior and long-term evolution.Biological activities have become increasingly significant in affecting the surface Earth system.The coupling between the internal and external Earth systems becomes more complex.Distinguishing and quantifying the impacts of Earth spherical interactions and biological activities on the surface Earth system is a major challenge.The Sun-Earth space system involves multiple physical processes such as solar activity,Earth's magnetic field,atmosphere,and space weather.Solar activity significantly affects the Earth's space environment,but existing observational and reconstruction methods and prediction models still lack precision and timeliness.Thus it is important to improve the prediction capability of solar activity and reduce the impact of space weather disasters.How to cross different scales and establish coupled models of multiple physical processes is a significant challenge in the study of the Sun-Earth space system.Because the various processes and phenomena within and between these three Earth subsystems often span multiple scales in both space and time and exhibit strong nonlinear characteristics,understanding their behaviors and processes becomes complex and variable,posing great challenges for theoretical modelling and numerical simulation.Therefore,the study of Earth system science requires in-depth interdisciplinary integration to jointly reveal the basic laws and operating mechanisms of Earth system.

Earth's interiorEarth's exteriorGeospheresEnergy exchangeMaterial transfer

Yongfei ZHENG、Zhengtang GUO、Nianzhi JIAO、Mu MU、Shilong PIAO、Suiyan FU、Dinghui YANG、Maoyan ZHU

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State Key Laboratory of Lithospheric and Environmental Coevolution,School of Earth and Space Sciences,University of Science and Technology of China,Hefei 230026,China

State Key Laboratory of Lithospheric and Environmental Coevolution,Institute of Geology and Geophysics,Chinese Academy of Sciences,Beijing 100029,China

School of Ocean and Earth Sciences,Xiamen University,Xiamen 361102,China

Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences,Fudan University,Shanghai 200438,China

School of Environment,Peking University,Beijing 100871,China

School of Earth and Space Sciences,Peking University,Beijing 100871,China

Department of Mathematical Sciences,Tsinghua University,Beijing 100084,China

Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology,Chinese Academy of Sciences,Nanjing 210008,China

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2024

中国科学:地球科学(英文版)
中国科学院

中国科学:地球科学(英文版)

影响因子:1.002
ISSN:1674-7313
年,卷(期):2024.67(10)