week 11 vocab

Question 1

fluid layer of upper mantle, causes crustal plates to move (plate tectonics)

Answer 1

asthenosphere

Question 2

a material that forms coral skeletons. Material occurs in nature as limestone

Answer 2

calcium carbonate

Question 3

lighter rock of continents, mostly granite

Answer 3

continental crust

Question 4

region where two or more plates are pushing together; form mountains, island arc, or trenches

Answer 4

convergent boundary

Question 5

innermost layer of Earth, composed of a solid inner core of mostly iron, and a liquid outer core that is a little lighter and cooler

Answer 5

core

Question 6

region where two plates are moving apart; form new ocean or rift valley

Answer 6

divergent boundary

Question 7

a sudden movement of the Earth’s crust caused by slippage along fractures in the rocks (faults) or volcanic activity

Answer 7

earthquake

Question 8

the opposing forces of two surfaces trying to move past each other; the energy is released as heat

Answer 8

friction

Question 9

holes or vents from which steam rushes into the air. It is like a hot spring but lacks liquid water

Answer 9

fumaroles/steam vents

Question 10

hot springs that erupt periodically. The eruptions is the result of super-heated water below-ground becoming trapped in channels leading to the surface. The hottest temperatures are at the bottom of these channels (nearer the hot rock that heats the water) but the deep water cannot vaporize because of the weight of the water above. Instead, steam is sent upwards in bubbles, collecting in the channel’s tight spots until they essentially become clogged, leading to a point where the confined bubbles actually lift the water above, causing the geyser to overflow.

Answer 10

geyser

Question 11

a plume of magma rising up from a (relatively) stationary area in the mantle

Answer 11

hot spot

Question 12

similar to geysers, but their underground channels are large enough to allow rapid circulation of water

Answer 12

hot springs

Question 13

the mineral (rock) part of Earth, as opposed to the hydrosphere (water) biosphere (living things), and atmosphere (air and other gases) parts of Earth

Answer 13

lithosphere

Question 14

molten semiliquid rock underground (called lava when it reaches the surface)

Answer 14

magma

Question 15

main volume of the earth between the crust and the core; increases in pressure and temperature with depth

Answer 15

mantle

Question 16

hermal areas where water-saturated sediment (similar to clay) is affected by super-heated steam below. Rising steam forces its way upwards through the mud and ground water, bursting upwards sending showers of mud into the air, as if in a small explosion

Answer 16

mudpots

Question 17

heavy, thinner rock under oceans, mostly basalt

Answer 17

oceanic crust

Question 18

long, narrow depressions on the seafloor. These chasms are the deepest parts of the ocean—and some of the deepest natural spots on Earth

Answer 18

oceanic trench

Question 19

force applied all over an object’s area by some mass pushing down on it due to gravity

Answer 19

pressure

Question 20

a long, narrow valley lying between two plates where the earth’s lithosphere has become thin. Unlike river valleys that form primarily through erosion, rift valleys form by the subsidence (gradual caving in) of the intermediate land as the plates are pulled apart

Answer 20

rift valley

Question 21

area where a lithospheric plate is descending into the asthenosphere, creating deep trenches

Answer 21

subduction zone

Question 22

the 12 rigid pieces of Earth’s lithosphere, made of oceanic or continental crust, which move independently of each other

Answer 22

tectonic plates

Question 23

region where two plates move parallel along each other’s edges in opposite directions

Answer 23

transform boundary