Chapter 8 Flashcards
Earth Systems
Core
The innermost zone of Earth’s interior, composed mostly of iron and nickel. It includes a liquid outer layer and a solid inner layer
Mantle
The layer of Earth above the core, containing magma
Asthenosphere
The layer of Earth located in the outer part of the mantle, composed of semi-molten rock
Lithosphere
The outermost layer of Earth, including the mantle and crust
Crust
In geology, the chemically distinct outermost layer of the lithosphere
Hot Spots
An area where a column of hot material rises from deep within a planet’s mantle and heats the lithosphere above it, often causing volcanic activity at the surface
Plate Tectonics
Large movable plates under the Earth’s surface
Oceanic Plates
thinner, dense, relatively young, basaltic
Seafloor Spreading
as oceanic plates move apart rising magma from new oceanic crust on the seafloor at the boundaries between those places
Subduction
A geological process in which one edge of a crustal plate is forced sideways and downward into the mantle below another plate
Divergent Boundary
A plate boundary where two plates move away from each other
Convergent Boundary
A tectonic plate boundary where two plates collide, come together, or crash into each other
Transform Boundary
A plate boundary where two plates move past each other in opposite directions
Continental Plates
A continental plate is a geologic plate in which most of the crust (the top rock layer is mostly land)
Fault Zone
large expanses of rock where movement has occurred, form in the brittle upper lithosphere where two plates meet
Earthquake
A sudden and violent shaking of the ground, sometimes causing great destruction, as a result of movements within the earth’s crust or volcanic action
Epicenter
the point on the Earth’s surface directly above the focus of an earthquake
Ring of Fire
famous pattern of volcanic and earthquake activity along the continental borders of the Pacific ocean
Richter Scale
numerical scale used to measure the magnitude or energy release of an earthquake. Every unit is 10 times greater than the next earthquake (<4 is insignificant, minor is 4-5, damaging is 5-6, destructive 6-7, and major 7-8, and great is <8)
Minerals
olid crystalline chemical substances, form under specific temperatures and pressure, building blocks of rocks. inorganic, naturally occurring
Rock Cycle
constant formation and destruction of rock, very slow
Igneous Rocks
Formed by solidification of molten magma composed of interlocking crystals
Sedimentary Rocks
occurring when particles of broken rock and organic materials are pressed and cemented together to form new rocks. Sediments are mud, sand, pebbles, shells, bones, leaves, and stems. Some rocks of this type can be sandstone, limestone, and gypsum
Metamorphic Rocks
Made when heat, pressure, or fluids change one type of rock into another type of rock
Physical Weathering
The mechanical breakdown of rocks and minerals
Chemical Weathering
The breakdown of rocks and minerals by chemical reactions, the dissolving of chemical elements from rock, or both
Erosion
Physical removal of rock fragments from a landscape or ecosystem
Deposition
Accumulation of depositing of eroded material
Ores
a naturally occurring solid material from which a metal or valuable mineral can be profitably extracted
Metals
An element with properties that allow it to conduct electricity and heat energy
Known Reserves
resources known to be available for economic exploitation
Strip Mining
Removal of strips of rock and soil to expose ore
Tailings
Mining spoils
Open-Pit Mining
Mining technique that uses a large pit or hole in the ground
Subsurface Mining
Mining technique used when the desired resource is more than 100 m below the surface of Earth
SMRCA Law
primary federal law that regulates the environmental effects of coal mining in the United States
Mining Spoils (tailings)
Unwanted waste material created during mining
Mountaintop Removal
Mining technique in which the entire top of a mountain is removed with explosives
Mining law of 1872
United States federal law that authorizes and governs prospecting and mining for economic minerals, such as gold, platinum, and silver, on federal public lands
Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977
primary federal law that regulates the environmental effects of coal mining in the United State
Smelting
To extract metal from its ore by a process involving heating and melting
Gangue
the commercially valueless material in which ore is found
Spoil Banks
a bank of excavated refuse or waste earth, as of shale from surface coal mining
Area Strip Mining
Surface mining technique in which a large area of soil and rock is removed at once
Contour Strip Mining
Surface mining technique in which soil and rock is removed in strips
Acid Mine Drainage
the acidic water that the when sulphide minerals are exposed to air and water and, through a natural chemical reaction, produce sulphuric acid
Heap Leach Extraction
an industrial mining process to extract precious metals, copper, uranium, and other compounds from ore via a series of chemical reactions that absorb specific minerals and then re-separates them after their division from other earth materials
