Mountains, volcanoes and earthquakes Flashcards
What is a fault line?
A tectonic plate boundary
What is a mountain range?
A group of mountains formed along plate boundaries
What is a fold mountain?
A mountain formed by tectonic plates crumpling and folding
What is an active volcano?
A volcano that has erupted in the last 10,000 years
What is a dormant volcano?
A volcano that hasn’t erupted in a long time but may erupt again
What is an extinct volcano?
A volcano that hasn’t erupted in the last 10,000 years
A shield volcano is…
Formed at a constructive plate boundary
A composite volcano is…
Formed at a destructive plate boundary
Where is the Ring of Fire?
The Pacific Ocean
What is a mantle plume?
An area under the Earth’s crust which is abnormally hot
What is a hot spot?
An area above the mantle plume where the crust melts causing volcanic activity
A subduction zone is when…
A heavier oceanic plate is forced beneath a continental plate
Geothermal means…
Energy from the heat of the Earth
What is magma?
Molten (liquid) rock in the Earth’s mantle
What is lava?
Magma that has reached the Earth’s surface
What is a fissure?
A crack in the land formed by tectonic activity
A tsunami is…
An earthquake beneath the ocean, causing huge waves
What are the Earth’s main layers?
Inner core, outer core, mantle, crust
What is the Ring of Fire?
A plate boundary where lots of volcanic activity occurs
Tectonic plates are…
Pieces of the Earth that constantly move. They can move away, slide against or collide
How does an earthquake occur?
Tectonic plates conintually move in different directions over time, friction causes energy to build up, it is released and creates a shock wave
Name some dangers of living near a volcano
Earthquake, landslide, tsunami, pyroclastic flow, lava flow, ash fall
Name some benefits of living near an earthquake
nutrient-rich soil, tourism, geothermal energy, mining minerals
What is the full name of a GIS system?
Geographic information system
What does a GIS system do?
A source of evidence used to interpret geographic data
The moment magnitude scale is used to…
Measure the strength of earthquakes
