Earth's surface vs layer

Earth's surface and layer both are nouns.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
Earth's surface	Yes	No	No	No
layer	Yes	No	Yes	No

As nouns, layer is a hypernym of Earth's surface; that is, layer is a word with a broader meaning than Earth's surface:

Earth's surface: the outermost level of the land or sea
layer: a relatively thin sheetlike expanse or region lying over or under another

Earth's surface (noun)	layer (noun)
the outermost level of the land or sea	thin structure composed of a single thickness of cells
	a hen that lays eggs
	single thickness of usually some homogeneous substance
	an abstract place usually conceived as having depth
	a relatively thin sheetlike expanse or region lying over or under another

Earth's surface (verb)	layer (verb)
	make or form a layer