science lesson 1-2 Flashcards
Who was Wegener?
Alfred Wegener is best known for his contributions and his theory of continental drift. Wegener strongly believed that the continents were once all connected together which is what Pangaea was
Who was Ortelius?
Abraham Ortelius is best known for his noticing of how South America and Africa looked like they could fit together. He was in the field of cartography which explains why he would notice the fitting of the two continents. Ortelius noticed that the two continents could fit together 300 years ago as well as he noticed that North America could fit with these continents as well.
What is continental drift
Continental drift is the theory that Wegener came up with to explain why the continents were originally joined together millions of years ago. When the continents were joined together, they were called Pangaea.
What is the crust made of
Oxygen, silicate, and metals
How thick is the crust
30 km thick - 20 miles ——- ~7-40 km
What is the state of matter of the crust
Solid
What two types of crust is the crust made up of
There is oceanic crust and continental crust. Oceanic crust is crust in the ocean and continental crust is crust on the continents. Oceanic crust is under the continental crust and is closest to the lithosphere which is the rigid outer part of the earth; the crust and the upper mantle.
What is the mantle made of
Silicate
How thick are the mantles
2,900 km thick - 1,800 miles
Whats the state of matter of the mantles
Solid/Liquid
What 3 parts is the mantle made up of
The upper mantle, the middle mantle, and the lower mantle. The middle mantle has convection currents which are heat-driven cycles that are in the air, ocean, and mantle. The asthenosphere and lithosphere are located in the upper mantle. The asthenosphere is the upper layer of the Earth’s mantle where there is relatively low resistance to plastic and convection currents.
What is the outer core made up of
Liquid iron and nickel
How thick is the outer core
2,300 km thick - 1,400 miles
Whats the state of matter of the outer core
Liquid
What does the outer core undergoe
The outer core is a liquid which is very rare. It undergoes less pressure than the inner core causing it to be a liquid.
Whats the inner core made of
Metals, iron, and nickel
Whats the thickness of the inner core
1,200 km thick - 750 miles
Whats the state of matter of the inner core
Solid
Where does the inner core lie
The inner core lies under the outer core and is a solid. This is because it undergoes much more pressure than the outer core causing it to be solid.
Lithosphere
the rigid outer part of the earth; the crust and the upper mantle. The lithosphere is also broken down into slowly moving pieces of rock called tectonic plates.
Asthenosphere
the upper layer of the Earth’s mantle where there is relatively low resistance to plastic and convection currents.
Convection Currents
heat-driven cycles that are in the air, ocean, and mantle.
What is the ocean floor made up of
Igneous Rock
What is on the ocean floor
There are mountain ranges on the ocean floor–the major one is known as the mid-ocean ridge
