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2 - GEOGRAPHY 2 > 3 - SOLID EARTH/LITHOSPHERE > Flashcards

3 - SOLID EARTH/LITHOSPHERE Flashcards

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1
Q

It includes all of space, and all the matter and energy that space contains.

A

Universe

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2
Q

the leading explanation about how the universe began.

A

Big Bang Theory

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3
Q

o The universe began about _____ years ago.

A

13.8 billion

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4
Q

a large group of stars, gas, and dust bound together by gravity.

A

Galaxy

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5
Q

the galaxy in which Earth resides.

A

Milky Way Galaxy

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6
Q

our Milky Way’s closest neighbor. The closest large galaxy to Earth, is 2.5 million light-years away.

A

Andromeda Galaxy

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7
Q

the distance light travels in one Earth year.

A

light-year

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8
Q
  • A star is formed as a cloud of dust and gas in space, called a ______, coalesces by mutual gravitational attraction and collapses.
A

nebula

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9
Q
  • As the mass of this _____ increases, its internal pressure and temperature rise through gravitational compression.
A

protostar

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10
Q

o Not all the dust and gas in a nebula coalesces into the growing star. It also coalesces into smaller bodies that are not massive enough to trigger _______, resulting in the formation of planets, asteroids, and other objects.

A

nuclear fusion

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11
Q

o Our solar system and everything in it, including Earth, is formed from the coalescence of dust and gas about ____ years ago.

A

4.6 billion

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12
Q

a giant cloud of dust and gas in space.

A

nebula

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13
Q

the second stage of a newborn star in a nebula.

A

protostar

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14
Q

made up of the sun and everything that orbits around it, including planets, moons, asteroids, comets and meteoroids.

A

solar system

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15
Q

the star around which Earth and the other components of the solar system revolve.

A
  • Sun
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16
Q
  • The Sun is ____ the mass of Earth. The mass of the Sun exerts a strong gravitational pull that keeps the planets locked in their respective orbits along a flat plane.
A

333,000 times

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17
Q

Science of the solid Earth.

A

GEOLOGY

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18
Q

organization of Earth history into major units of eons, eras, and periods.

A
  • Geologic Time Scale
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18
Q

organization of Earth history into major units of eons, eras, and periods.

A
  • Geologic Time Scale
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19
Q

The ______ marks the beginning of widespread life on Earth.

A

Cambrian period

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20
Q

ü Largest unit of geologic time.
ü Including hundreds of millions of years; subdivided into eras.

A

Eon

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21
Q

ü Major unit of geologic time.
ü Tens or hundreds of millions of years in length; subdivided into periods.

A

Era

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22
Q

ü Unit of geologic time.
ü About tens of millions of years in length; subdivided into epochs

A

Period

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23
Q

The name given for the first super eon of Earth’s history.

Lasted from the first formation of the planet (about 4.6 billion years ago)

A

Precambrian

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24
Q

PRECAMBRIAN’S THREE EONS

A

Hadean Eon
Archean Eon
Proterozoic Eon

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25
Q

Earth’s initial formation

A

Hadean Eon

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26
Q

Formation of Earth’s crust

A

Archean Eon

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27
Q

Multicellular life

A

Proterozoic Eon

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28
Q

The eon of visible life.

A

Phanerozoic

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29
Q

ERA

A

Paleozoic
Mesozoic
Cenozoic

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30
Q

Old life
Includes early land plants, insects, reptiles, and amphibians

A

Paleozoic

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30
Q

Old life
Includes early land plants, insects, reptiles, and amphibians

A

Paleozoic

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31
Q

Middle life
Dominated by the dinosaurs.

A

Mesozoic

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32
Q

Recent life
Plants and animals look most like those on Earth today.

A

Cenozoic

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33
Q

Tertiary Period

A

Paleogene Period
Neogene Period
Quaternary Period

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34
Q

The beginning of the Cenozoic era
- dinosaurs, pterosaurs, and giant marine reptiles were conspicuously absent from the face of the Earth.

A

Paleogene Period

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35
Q

______ means “new born”
- Mountains rose, and sea levels fell. The climate cooled and dried.

A

Neogene Period

36
Q

Characterized by the expansion and contraction of ice sheets in predictable cycles.

A

Quaternary Period

37
Q

unit of geologic time up to tens of millions of years in length; a subdivision of the period time unit.

A

Epoch

38
Q

EPOCH

A

Pleistocene Epoch
Holocene Epoch
Anthropocene Epoch

39
Q

The Ice Age
Epoch of the Cenozoic Era

A

Pleistocene Epoch

40
Q

Time since the end of the last major glacial epoch. The _____ has been a relatively warm period in between ice ages.

A

Holocene Epoch

41
Q

An unofficial unit of geologic time, used to describe the most recent period in Earth’s history when human activity started to have a significant impact on the planet’s climate and ecosystems.

A

Anthropocene Epoch

42
Q

Three major compositional layers of the Earth:

A

Core
Mantle
Crust

43
Q

Spherical central mass of the Earth. It composed largely of iron and consisting of an outer liquid zone and an interior solid zone.

A
  1. Core
44
Q

The inner part of the Earth’s core. consists of solid iron and nickel.

A

o Inner Core

45
Q

The outer part of the Earth’s core. consists of molten iron and nickel.

A

o Outer Core

46
Q

Rock layer or shell of the Earth beneath the crust and surrounding the core. It composed of ultramafic igneous rock of silicate mineral composition.

A
  1. Mantle
47
Q

Outermost solid shell or layer of the Earth. It composed largely of silicate minerals.

A
  1. Crust
48
Q

The Structure of the Earth

A

Lithosphere
Continental Crust
Oceanic Crust
Mohorovicic discontinuity or Moho
Asthenosphere
Seismic Waves

49
Q

The outer, solid part of Earth.

A

Lithosphere

50
Q

Granitic part of the Earth’s crust that makes up the continents.

A

Continental Crust

51
Q

Basaltic part of the Earth’s crust that makes up the ocean basins.

A

Oceanic Crust

52
Q

The boundary that separates the crust from the lithospheric mantle; seismic waves change speed at this boundary.

A

Mohorovicic discontinuity or Moho

53
Q

The layer of very soft rock that occurs in the upper part of the upper mantle.

A

Asthenosphere

54
Q

Vibrations that travel through the Earth when stress is released in an earthquake.

A

Seismic Waves

55
Q

FORCES OF GEOLOGIC CHANGE

A

Endogenic Processes
Exogenic Processes

56
Q

Internal Earth processes, such as tectonics and volcanism, that create landforms.

A
  • Endogenic Processes
57
Q

landform-making processes active at the Earth’s surface, such as erosion by water, waves and currents, glacial ice, and wind.

A

Exogenic Processes

58
Q

the body of knowledge about lithospheric plates and their motions.

A
  • Plate tectonics
59
Q

a sudden shaking of the ground caused by movements of Earth’s crust.

A
  • Earthquake
60
Q

a fracture or zone of fractures between two blocks of rock.

A

Fault

61
Q

the point on the Earth’s surface that lies directly over the focus of an earthquake.

A
  • Epicenter
62
Q

TYPES OF FAULTS

A

Normal Fault
Reverse Fault
Strike-slip Fault
Overthrust Fold

63
Q

A steeply inclined fault in which the hanging rock block moves relatively downward.

A

Normal Fault

64
Q

A steeply inclined fault in which the hanging rock block moves relatively upward.

A

Reverse Fault

65
Q

A structural fault along which two lithospheric plates or rock blocks move horizontally in opposite directions and parallel to the fault line.

A

Strike-slip Fault

66
Q

A structural feature where one part of the rock mass is shoved up and over the other.

A

Overthrust Fold

67
Q

happen when lava and gas are discharged from a volcanic vent.

A

Volcanic eruptions

68
Q

Hot molten rock that spills onto the surface of Earth’s crust.

A
  • Lava
69
Q

Melted rock that is below the surface of Earth’s crust.

A
  • Magma
70
Q

are long, narrow depressions on the seafloor.

A
  • Ocean trenches
71
Q

deepest of the world’s deep-sea trenches.

A
  • Mariana Trench (Marianas Trench)
72
Q

a path along the Pacific Ocean characterized by active volcanoes and frequent earthquakes.

A

The Ring of Fire

73
Q

o Also referred to as the Circum-Pacific Belt.

A

The Ring of Fire

74
Q

A large ocean wave triggered by an earthquake or other natural disturbance.

A
  • Tsunami
75
Q

The amount of energy released by an earthquake.

A
  • Magnitude
76
Q

naturally occurring, inorganic substances, often with a crystalline structure; they are largely composed of oxygen, silicon, aluminum, iron, calcium, sodium, potassium, and magnesium.

A
  • Minerals
77
Q

are naturally occurring assemblages of minerals.

A
  • Rocks
78
Q

Rocks’ three major classes:

A

Igneous rocks
Sedimentary rocks
Metamorphic rocks

79
Q

are largely composed of silicate minerals. ex: Basalt

A

o Igneous rocks

80
Q

are formed in layers, or strata, composed of transported rock fragments called sediment. ex: coal

A

o Sedimentary rocks

81
Q

are formed when igneous or sedimentary rocks are exposed to heat and pressure. ex: marble

A

o Metamorphic rocks

82
Q

natural feature, such as a hill or valley, on the surface of Earth.

A
  • Landform
83
Q

large landforms that rise high above surrounding terrain and usually form sharp peaks.

A
  • Mountains
84
Q

large, flat pieces of land with no drastic changes in elevation.

A
  • Plains
85
Q

an elevated piece of land that, unlike a mountain, is flat.

A
  • Plateau
86
Q

elevated sections of land with notable summits that are lower and less steep than mountains.

A
  • Hills
87
Q

a theory proposed by Alfred Wegener stating that continents move slowly across Earth’s surface.

A
  • Continental Drift
88
Q

the hypothetical supercontinent, composed of all the present continents, that existed between 300 and 200 million years ago.

A
  • Pangaea

2 - GEOGRAPHY 2 (7 decks)

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