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Inside Earth Ch. 1
Plate Tectonics
Term | Definition |
---|---|
geologist | A scientist who studies the forces that make and shape planet Earth. |
rock | A naturally occurring solid composed of minerals, rock fragments, and sometimes other material such as organic matter. |
geology | The study of Earth's history as revealed in the rocks that make up the Earth. |
constructive force | Shapes Earth's surface by building up mountains and land masses. |
destructive force | Destroys and wears away landmasses through a process like erosion and weathering. |
continent | One of Earth's seven large land areas. |
seismic wave | A ground vibration produced by an earthquake. The closer to the epicenter, the stronger these waves are felt. |
pressure | The force being exerted on some part of Earth's structure due to gravity or the movement of its layers. |
crust | The outermost layer of solid rock that includes both dry land and the ocean floor. The thinnest layer of the Earth. |
basalt | A dense rock that is able to be found within the oceanic crust. |
granite | The most abundant rock in the continental crust. |
mantle | The thick layer of hot, solid material between Earth's crust and core that has convection currents |
Lithosphere | The crust and upper mantle of the Earth that is solid and rigid. |
asthenosphere | The soft layer of the mantle on which the lithosphere floats. |
outer core | A layer of molten metal, mainly nickel and iron, that surrounds Earth’s inner core. |
inner core | A solid sphere of iron and nickel at the center of the Earth. |
heat transfer | The movement of energy from a warmer object to a cooler object. |
radiation | Heat transport through empty space. |
conduction | Heat transport by direct contact of energy from one particle to another, without moving the particle to a new location. |
convection | Heat transport by a heated fluid caused by a difference in temperature and density. |
convection current | Heat movement in a fluid material. Responsible for the movement of the Earth's Plates. |
density | The amount of mass in a given space. |
continental drift | A theory that continents can drift apart from one another and have done so in the past. |
Pangaea | An extremely large landmass when all continents were connected together. |
fossil | The imprint or hardened remains of a plant or animal that lived long ago. |
deep-ocean trench | A deep valley along the ocean floor beneath which oceanic crust slowly sinks toward the mantle. |
mid-ocean ridge | A giant undersea mountain range extending around the world like the seams of a baseball. |
sonar | A system that uses the reflection of underwater sound waves to detect objects. |
seafloor spreading | The idea that the middle of the ocean is spreading apart, moving very slowly in opposite directions. |
subduction | The process in which oceanic crust sinks beneath a deep-ocean trench and back into the mantle at a convergent boundary. |
plate | A slab of Earth's lithosphere that can move around on the planet's surface. |
scientific theory | A well-tested concept that explains a wide range of observations about a particular scientific question. |
plate tectonics | The movement of the Earth’s upper mantle and crust. |
fault | A break in Earth's lithosphere where one block of rock moves toward, away from, or past another. |
transform boundary | Two plates sliding horizontally past each other. |
divergent boundary | A place where two of Earth's tectonic plates are moving apart. |
rift valley | A deep valley that forms when two plates drift apart. |
convergent boundary | A boundary between lithospheric plates where the plates move toward one another and one plate is recycled into the mantle. |