Inside the earth

Question 1

Lithosphere

Answer 1

• Outermost, rigid layer of the earth (15-300 km thick).
• Made up of the crust and outer mantle.
• Divided into pieces called tectonic plates.

Question 2

Asthenosphere

Answer 2

• 250 km thick.
• Plastic layer of the mantle on which pieces of the lithosphere move.
• Made of solid rock that flows very slowly.

Question 3

Mesosphere

Answer 3

• 2550 km.
• Strong, lower part of mantle.
• Extends from the bottom of the asthenosphere to the earths core.

Question 4

Outer Core

Answer 4

• 2200 km.

- liquid layer that lies beneath the mantle and surrounds the inner core.

Question 5

Inner Core

Answer 5

• 1230 km thick.

- Solid, denser center of Earth.

Question 6

Seismic Waves

Answer 6

• The inside of Earth is mapped with seismic waves from earthquake

Question 7

Oceanic Crust

Answer 7

the relatively thin part of the earth’s crust which underlies the ocean basins. It is geologically young compared with the continental crust and consists of basaltic rock overlain by sediments

Question 8

Continental Crust

Answer 8

the relatively thick part of the earth’s crust that forms the large landmasses. It is generally older and more complex than the oceanic crust

Question 9

Density

Answer 9

the degree of compactness of a substance

Question 10

Alfred Wegener

Answer 10

was a German polar researcher, geophysicist and meteorologist. During his lifetime he was primarily known for his achievements in meteorology and as a pioneer of polar research

Question 11

Continental Drift

Answer 11

the gradual movement of the continents across the earth’s surface through geological time

Question 12

Convergent Boundary

Answer 12

are areas on Earth where two or more lithospheric plates collide. One plate eventually slides beneath the other causing a process known as subduction. there caused by earthquakes

Question 13

Divergent Boundary

Answer 13

a divergent boundary or divergent plate boundary is a linear feature that exists between two tectonic plates that are moving away from each other. Divergent boundaries within continents initially produce rifts which eventually become rift valleys.

Question 14

Transform Boundary

Answer 14

is a plate boundary where the motion is predominantly horizontal. It ends abruptly and is connected to another transform, a spreading ridge, or a subduction zone.

Question 15

Sea-floor Spreading

Answer 15

the formation of new areas of oceanic crust, which occurs through the upwelling of magma at midocean ridges and its subsequent outward movement on either side.

Question 16

Pangaea

Answer 16

was a supercontinent that existed during the late Paleozoic and early Mesozoic eras. It assembled from earlier continental units approximately 335 million years ago, and it began to break apart about 175 million years ago.

Question 17

Laurasia

Answer 17

was the more northern of two supercontinents that formed part of the Pangaea supercontinent around 335 to 175 million years ago.

Question 18

Gondwana

Answer 18

was a supercontinent that existed from the Neoproterozoic until the Carboniferous

Question 19

Mesosaurus

Answer 19

is an extinct genus of reptile from the Early Permian of southern Africa and South America.

Question 20

Glossopteris

Answer 20

tongue because the leaves were tongue-shaped, and pteris, Greek for fern or feathery) is the largest and best-known genus of the extinct order of seed ferns known as Glossopteridales (also known as Arberiales or Ottokariales).