What is it
Students learn about the structure of the Earth (core, mantle, crust), the rock cycle, the composition of the atmosphere, and human impact on the atmosphere including the greenhouse effect and climate change.
Why it matters
This connects chemistry to real, urgent environmental issues students will keep encountering throughout life, and is developed with more quantitative detail in GCSE chemistry's atmosphere topic.
Exam tip
Be able to name the main gases in the atmosphere and their approximate proportions (nitrogen ~78%, oxygen ~21%) — this specific fact is tested frequently and precisely.
Related topics
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