Chapter 7 Flashcards
What is the layer of rock between the Earth’s crust and core?
Mantle
What is the central part of the Earth below the mantle?
Core
What is the solid, outer layer of the Earth that consists of the crust and the rigid upper part of the mantle?
Lithosphere
What is the soft layer the mantle on which the tectonic plates move?
Asthenosphere
What is the strong, lower part of the mantle between the asthenosphere and the outer core?
Mesosphere
What is a block of lithosphere that consists of the crust and the rigid, outermost part of the mantle?
Tectonic plate
What is the hypothesis that states that the continents once formed a single landmass, broke up, and drifted to their present locations?
Continental Drift
What is the process by which new oceanic lithosphere forms as magma rises toward the surface and solidifies?
sea-floor spreading
What is the theory that explains how large pieces of the Earth’s outermost layer move and change shape?
Plate tectonics
What is the boundary formed by collision of two lithospheric plates?
Convergent boundary
What is the boundary between two tectonic plates that are moving away from each other?
Divergent boundary
What is the boundary between tectonic plates that are sliding past each other horizontally?
Transform boundary
What is stress that occurs when forces squeeze an object?
Compression
What is stress that occurs when forces act to stretch an object?
Tension
What is the bending of rock layers due to stress?
Folding
