Earth Science Study Guide – Flashcards
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Lithosphere
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The outer shell of the Earth consisting of the crust and uppermost portion of the mantle.
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Hydrosphere
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water in the earth system-gaseous (water vapor), solid (snow and ice) and liquid (rain and water); one of the four spheres of the Earth system
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Atmosphere
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The gaseous envelope of air surrounding Earth, made up of a mixture of about 78 percent nitrogen, 21 percent oxygen, and 1 percent other gases and water vapors, one of the four spheres of the Earth system
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Troposphere
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The lowest layer of Earth's atmosphere characterized by decreasing temperature with altitude.
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Longitude (meridians)
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Angular distance in degrees east or west of the prime meridian.
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Latitude
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Angular distance in degrees north or south of the equator.
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equator
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imaginary line that circles Earth halfway between the North and South Poles
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Contour Lines
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Isoline on a map that connects places with the same elevation and shows the shape of the land
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Contour Interval
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Difference in height between two adjacent contour lines
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Topographic Map
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Map that shows the shape of the land using contour lines; a map showing an elevation field
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Minerals
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Naturally occurring inorganic solid with a distinct chemical composition and crystalline structure
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Luster
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Property of a mineral that describes quality or appearance of light reflected from its surface
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Streak
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Property of mineral that describes its color in powdered form
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Crystal structure
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Internal arrangement of atoms
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Hardness
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Resistance of a mineral to scratching
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Cleavage
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Tendency of a mineral to split along planes of its crystalline structure where bonds are weakest.
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Fracture
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property of a mineral that describes an irregular pattern of breakage in a direction other than along cleavage planes.
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Igneous
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Rock formed by cooling and hardening of magma
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Crystallization
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Formation of crystals
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Mafic
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High density, dark, rich in iron and magnesium
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Felsic
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Low density, light, rich in silica
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Sedimentary
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Rock formed by the compaction and cementing of layers of sediment
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Clastic/Fragmental
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Sedimentary rocks formed from fragments of other rocks
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Fossils
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Remains any other evidence of life from another geologic age preserved in rock
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Strata
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Layers of sedimentary rock that form matter particles settle out of a fluid and are compressed over time
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Chemical/Organic (evaporate)
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water evaporates leaving back a rock
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Metamorphic
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Rock that has undergone chemical/structural change due to the effects of heat and pressure
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Banding
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Alternation of dark and light mineral alignment in a metamorphic rock
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Folding
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When mineral alignment folds and rocks come together due to regional metamorphism
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Foliated/Non-Foliated
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Alignment/non-alignment of minerals
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Earthquake
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Shaking of Earth's crust caused by a release of energy
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Fault
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Break in lithosphere along which movement
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Focus
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Point at which first movement occurs during an earthquake
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Epicenter
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Point on Earth's surface directly above the focus of an earthquake
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Magnitude
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Measure of the amount of energy released in an earthquake
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Seismograph
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Instrument that detects and records waves produced by earthquakes
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Origin time
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Time when the earthquake is created
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Triangulation
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The system used to locate the epicenter with 3 seismic waves
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P-Waves
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Body waves that squeeze and stretch rock materials as they pass through the Earth, aka compressional/primary waves
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S-waves
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Body waves that cause particles of rock material to move at right angles to the direction in which the waves are traveling, aka shear/secondary waves
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Crust
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very thin outer layer of Earth above mantle, composed of a rigid layer of lighter rocks
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Mantle
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Thickest of Earth's layers, located between outer core and Earth's crust, composed mostly of compounds rich in iron, silicon, and magnesium
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Core
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Inner part of the Earth
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Outer Core
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layer of Earth's interior located between mantle + inner core; composed of iron and nickel in a liquid shape
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Inner
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Solid innermost layer of Earth; composed of iron and nickel, under extremely high pressure and temperature
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Shield
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Shield-shaped volcano with broad base and gently sloping sides made of basaltic lava
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Cinder Cone
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Cone-shaped volcano formed from lava fragments that have been ejected from a volcanic vent
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Composite
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Volcano made of layers of hardened lava flows and pyroclastic materials
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Plate boundary
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where 2 plates meet
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Convergent Boundary
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Boundary between 2 plates moving toward each other/converging
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Divergent Boundary
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Boundary between 2 lithospheric plates moving apart
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Transform Boundary
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Boundary between 2 plates sliding past each other; causes earthquakes
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Subduction
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convergent boundary where an oceanic plate is plunging beneath another, overriding plate
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Ridge
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mt. range underwater
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Convection
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transfer of heat energy in a liquid/gas through circulation of currents of heated particles within the substance
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Hot Spot
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Area of volcanic activity that results from a plume of hot solid material that has risen from deep within Earth's mantle
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Seamount
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cone-shaped undersea mt. of volcanic origin that rises high above the ocean floor.
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Physical Weathering
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Changes size and/or shape of a rock without changing the rock's chemical composition
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Frost Action
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Agent of physical weathering where water seeps into cracks and the water freezes, its volume increases. Temperature must alternate from non-freezing and freezing. Increase in volume makes cracks in rock bigger even time water freezes.
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Abrasion
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The wearing away of rock material by grinding action
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Wind Abrasion
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Causes particles of sediment to abrad exposed rock surfaces
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Ice Abrasion
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Glaciers drag, scrape, and break rocks apart
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Water Abrasion
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Particles bump and rub against one another and the streambed
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Biological Abrasion
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Plant roots that grow in the cracks of rocks and animals burrow beneath the ground. As a plant grows, its roots invade the crevices of a rock and hold them open.
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Chemical Weathering
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Breakdown/Decomposition of rock that takes place when minerals are changed into different substances.
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Humus
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located in top layer; dark colored organic matter' helpful towards growing crops
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O/A Horizon
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The "leaching zone", important materials transported deeper into the soil by ground water infiltration
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B Horizon
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Mineral enriched horizon
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C Horizon
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Usually composed of broken bedrock, which may merge into solid bedrock
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D Horizon/Bedrock
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Solid layer beneath the soil horizons
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Erosion
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transportation of weathered materials
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Agents of erosion
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Factors of erosion: water, wind, or glaciers
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How does wind cause erosion?
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It picks up loose rock materials, such as sand, silt, and clay, and carries them away
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How does water cause erosion?
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Running water carries the smallest particles in solution; cannot be filtered out of water; suspension particles are too small to settle on own; cannot be filtered out of water. Flowing water rolls/bounces largest most dense particles a long stream bed. Particles of low density are carried along surface by flotation.
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How do ice/glaciers cause erosion?
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As a glacier moves it carries, pushes, and drags loose rock material
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Particle Size
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smaller the particles, the slower it settles; larger the particle, the faster it will settle
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Particle Shape
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Flat, angular, and irregularly shaped particles that have more surface area settle more slowly than smooth, rounded particles
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Particle Density
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Among particles of same avg. size and shape, denser particles settle faster, while less dense particles take longer to settle.
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How does velocity effect how it settles?
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bigger sediments settle faster
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Laurentide Ice Sheet
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Major recurring glacier that at its max completely covered North America east of the ROckies from the Arctic Ocean to a line passing through the vicinity of Cincinnati, St. Louis, Kansas City, and the Dakotas
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Drumlin
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Long, smooth canoe-shaped hill that is usually found in groups shaped by an advancing glacier
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Erratic
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Large boulder that has been transported into an area by a glacier
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Moraine (terminal or lateral)
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Deposit of till left behind when a glacier recedes
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Relief
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change in elevation between the highest + the lowest places
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climate
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course of the weather that an area has over a long period of time
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Time
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non-spatial continuum in which events occur in apparently irreversible succession from the past-present-future.
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Human Activites
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something that people do to or cause to happen
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longshore Current
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Ocean current that flows close and almost parallel to the shoreline and is caused by the rush of waves toward the shore.
