GEOLOGY Flashcards
GEOLOGY
EARTH’S STRUCTURE, HISTORY, AND PROCESSES INVOLVED
CRUST
OUTERMOST LAYER
MANTLE
MIDDLE LAYER, MADE MOSTLY OF MOLTEN ROCK
CORE
INNER LAYER, MADE OF IRON AND NICKEL
TECTONIC PLATES
RIGID PIECES OF THE EARTH’S CRUST AND UPPER MANTLE
PLATE TECTONICS
THEORY DESCRIBING THE LARGE-SCALE MOTIONS OF THE EARTH’S LITHOSPHERE
CONTINENTAL DRIFT THEORY
THEORIZES THAT THE EARTH HAD A SINGLE CONTINENT
DIVERGENT BOUNDARY
PLATES MOVE AWAY FROM EACH OTHER
CONVERGENT BOUNDARY
PLATES MOVE TOWARDS EACH OTHER
TRANSFORM BOUNDARY
PLATES MOVE ALONG/SLIDE PAST EACH OTHER
EARTHQUAKE
SHAKING OF THE GROUND CAUSED BY TENSION OF PLATES
FOCUS
POINT BENEATH EARTH’S SURFACE WHERE ROCKS BREAK UNDER STRESS
EPICENTER
CENTER OF THE QUAKE ABOVE THE FOCUS
BODY WAVES
ENERGY WAVES THAT TRAVEL UNDERGROUND
PRIMARY WAVES
COMPRESSIONAL, FAST, AND TRAVELS THROUGH ALL MEDIUMS
SECONDARY WAVES
SHEAR, SLOWER THAN PRIMARY WAVES, AND TRAVELS THROUGH SOLID ROCK
SURFACE WAVES
ENERGY WAVES THAT TRAVEL ALONG THE SURFACE OF THE EARTH
RAYLEIGH WAVE
DISSIPATES AS IT TRAVELS FARTHER FROM THE CENTER
LOVE WAVE
SIDEWAY MOVEMENT THAT OCCUR WHEN THE GROUND IS MADE OF MULTIPLE LAYERS
TSUNAMI
SERIES OF ENORMOUS WAVES IN THE OCEAN OR LARGE WAVES
RICHTER SCALE
NUMERICAL SCALE EXPRESSING THE MAGNITUDE OF AN EARTHQUAKE
MERCALLI SCALE
USES THE OBSERVATIONS OF PEOPLE AND IS LESS SCIENTIFIC THAN THE RICHTER SCALE
VOLCANO
OPENING OR RUPTURE IN THE EARTH’S SURFACE