Geology 101 USC EXAM 1: Scott White – Flashcards
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Supernova
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Death of a star, birth of our solar system
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Protostar
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As the cloud collapses, it heats up and compresses in the center. Rest of gas orbits/flows around it
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Planetesimals
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Dust in the rings condenses into particles Particles coalesce to form
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Universe
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mostly empty space with concentrations of mass.
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Cosmology
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the scientific study of the Universe
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Heliocentric model
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shows that the sun lay at the center of the universe and that the earth and planet orbit the sun. (Gained acceptance during the Renaissance
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Matter
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substance of the universe that takes up space mass, density, weight
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Energy
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ability to do work Heat, light, pull of gravity
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Stars
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immense balls of incandescent gas which gravity binds together into galaxies
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Our solar system vs. Milky Way
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The Solar System is on an arm of the Milky Way galaxy.
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100 billion
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How many galaxies exist in our visible universe?
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Our sun is one of 300 billion stars in the Milky Way
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How many stars in Milky Way?
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The Doppler Effect
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Sound waves compress or relax with relative motion
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Compressed
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shorter wave length; higher frequency
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Relaxed
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longer wavelength; lower frequency
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Red Light
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Longer wavelength and lower frequency Light moving away from an observer
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Blue Light
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shorter wavelength and higher frequency. Light moving towards an observer compresses
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The Big Bang
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all mass and energy in a single point It exploded ~13.7Ga and has been expanding ever since
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First Instant of Big Bang
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During this only energy existed, no matter.
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Immediate effects of Big Bang
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- Hydrogen atoms within seconds - At 3 minutes, hydrogen atoms fused with helium atoms. - Light nuclei - The Universe expanded and cooled
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Temperature, density, rate of rotation
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Gravity caused collapse of gaseous nebulae, which resulted in an increase in
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Prostar
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The region gained mass and density Mass compacted into a smaller region and began to rotate Rotation rate increased, developing a disk shape. The central ball of the disk became hot enough to glow
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Helium
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Temperatures soared to 10 million degrees At these temperatures, hydrogen nuclei fused to create
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Atmosphere
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the gaseous envelope
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Biosphere
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the wealth of life
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Hydrosphere
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the blue liquid water
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Lithosphere
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the solid earth
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Sunlight
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powers atmosphere, biosphere, and hydrosphere
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Composition of Atmosphere
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Pressure, Temperature, Density, Moisture composition
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78.08
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% Nitrogen in atmosphere
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20.95
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% Oxygen in atmosphere
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0.97
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% Other gases
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Argon, Carbon Dioxide, Neon, Helium, Methane, Krypton
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Other gases in atmosphere
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Topography
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land, defines plains, mountains, and valleys.
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Bathymetry
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sea-floor variations, defines mid-ocean ridges, abyssal plains, and deep ocean trenches
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91.2% of Earth's mass is composed of
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Iron-32.1%, Oxygen-30.1%, Silicon-15.1%, Magnesium 13.9% The remaining 8.8% consists of the remaining 88 elements
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Rocks
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aggregates of mineral, grains, and/or glass
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Igneous
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cooled from liquid (melt)
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Sedimentary
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debris cemented from preexisting rock
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Convergent
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plates move toward each other
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Oceanic - Continental Convergence
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dense oceanic slab sinks into asthenosphere creating a volcanic mountain chain called a continental volcanic arc
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Ocean - Ocean convergence
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two ocean slabs converge and one descends beneath the other forming a volcanic island arc
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Divergent
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plates move away from each other
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Transform
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plates move sideways past each other Offsets the continental crust
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Continental Drift
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An idea presented by Alfred Wegner in 1915 States that a super continent called Pangaea began breaking apart about 200 million years ago
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Evidence Of Continental Drift
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Fit of the continents Fossil evidence Rock type structural similarities (mountain ranges) Paleoclimatic evidence
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Recycling old Seafloor
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Seafloor spreading makes new seafloor Subduction removes old seafloor Transform, stable sliding connects boundaries
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Minerals
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Naturally occurring, formed by geologic processes Inorganic crystalline solid A definite chemical composition The building block for rocks
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Law of Constancy of Interfacial Angles
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Equivalent faces found on two samples of the same mineral always bear the same angular relationship
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Quick cooling
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tiny crystals
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Slow cooling
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large crystals
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Mineral Properties
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Color, Streak, Hardness, Luster, Specific gravity, Crystal habit and Cleavage
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Gems
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are single-crystal mineral that are Durable Rare Beautiful, described by the 5 C's Clarity, color, carat, cut, certification
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Texture of Igneous Rocks
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Are the minerals visible? Are there bubbles?
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Composition of Igneous Rocks
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Is it dark-colored, light gray or pink? Which minerals does it have?
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Aphanitic
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Crystals not seen with hand lens
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Phaneritic
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Crystals can be seen with hand lens
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Pegmatitic
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mostly large crystals
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Porphyritic
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Large and small crystals (slow and fast cooling)
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Pyroclastic
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between igneous and sedimentary
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Phenocrysts
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noticeably large crystals in igneous rocks
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Intrusive
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magma slowly travels up and cools beneath Earth's surface
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Extrusive
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magma escapes from beneath the surface in the form of lava
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Quench
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magma cools extremely fast into glass
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Lithification
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sediments are compressed together or hardened
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Cemented
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Sediments are glued together by tiny crystals that fill pores of sediment
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Precipitation
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Inter-grown mineral crystals precipitate from an aqueous solution
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Igneous
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cooled from liquid (melt)
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Sedimentary
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debris cemented from preexisting rock
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Metamorphic
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rock altered by pressure and temperature
