Earth Flashcards
What is the distance from Earth to the Sun
1 AU
What are the three main layers of the earth?
Crust, Mantle, Core
What are seismic waves?
Earthquakes on Earth
What are p-waves?
Primary waves created from seismic waves that are longitudinal or compression waves
What are S-waves?
The secondary was that are transverse. Also known as shear waves
What waves are not transmitted through fluids?
S-waves
What does the velocity of the waves depend on?
They depend on the modulus and density of the material it is traveling through
How do they use seismic waves to find the center of the earth?
They use the travel time of the wave to map changes in density and depth
What are the different layers of Earth’s surface?
The continental crust, oceanic crust, uppermost mantle, Asthenosphere/lithosphere
What do the call parts of mantle that come up from the Earth?
Mantle Xenolith
What is the mantle transition zone?
when the seismic velocity changes which represents a change in the mantle. When Olivine turns into perovskite
What is the seismic shadow zone?
Where we can pick up s waves and where p waves change velocity which allowed us to discover the inner core.
What is earth’s core made of?
Iron and nickel
How does the outer core of Earth work?
Molten lava flows like water and is convecting
How does the inner core of Earth work?
it is solid metal
What did we use to find the elements of the inner core?
We used meteorites found on earth from other planets cores
What is it called when the planets crust is pulled apart?
Divergent tectonic shifts
What is it called when two plates converge and what happens?
Convergent tectonic shifts and mountains are made
What is it called when two plates slide past each other?
transform tectonic shift
What is interesting about the positioning of global earthquakes and volcanoes?
they are all bunched together
What are the three types of volcanoes on Earth?
Shield volcanoes, Stratovolcanoes, Cinder cones
What % of earth is covered by the ocean?
71%
What are the 4 main layers of Earth’s atmosphere?
Troposphere, Stratosphere, Mesosphere, Thermosphere
