Earth Science

Description:	5th Grade Vocabulary
Category:	Earth Science
Created by:	llvaugha on 2009-03-31

Question	Answer
a group of things or parts that work together for a common purpose	system
a low area between hills and mountains where a river often flows	valley
the change of water from one state to another as it travels through Earth's atmosphere and its surface	water cycle
the process of rock breaking down into smaller pieces	weathering
an object in space that produces its own heat and light	star
something built by people	structure
a star around which the Earth and other planets in our solar system revolve	Sun
dark spots on the surface of the sun that are cooler than their surrounding areas	sunspots
a slanted surface; a surface that is not flat or level	slope
release enormous amounts of magnetic energy that can and sometimes do affect the electronic equipment on Earth	solar flare
arise from the intense heat of the corona; travel outward from the Sun through our Solar System	solar winds
violent explosions of streams of hot gas	solar prominence
the complete trip a planet makes around the Sun; Earth's is 365 1/4 days	revolution
the spinning of a planet or object in space on its axis	rotation
a line separating the land and the oceans; zero elevation	sea level
tiny bits of rock, shell, soil, sand, or dead plants	sediment
elevated areas of level land	plateau
the part of a river channel where the water moves rapidly over obstacles, such as large boulders	rapids
to use a material or substance again, usually in another form or way	recycle
resources that can be replaced in a short period of time, such as plants, animals, water, oxygen, and soil	renewable resources
the cyclical change in the way the moon reflects the Sun's light as it revolves around Earth	phases of the moon
the highest point or top of a mountain	peak
broad, flat areas of land not far above sea level	plains
large objects that revolve around a star	planets
a natural object that orbits a planet; a satellite	moon
a nonrenewable resource that is found under ground, used as a fuel and is a burnable gas	natural gas
resources that cannot be replaced in a short period of time, such as oil (petroleum), natural gas, coal, and minerals	nonrenewable resources
the path that one object takes around another object	orbit
drawings, usually on a flat surface, of an area or the features of an area	map
sudden downhill movement of rock, sediment, or soil; such as a landslide or mudslide	mass movement
a curve or loop in a river	meander
a representation, generally in miniature, to show the construction or appearance of something	model
resources that cannot be used up, such as wind, sunlight, and ocean tides	inexhaustible resources
to give an explanation	interpret
a shape of the land	landform
a natural or constructed embankment along a stream that protects land from flooding	levee
nonrenewable resources that formed from the remains of decayed plants and animals millions of years ago	fossil fuels
a slab of ice that moves slowly over the land	glacier
the force that pulls all objects in the universe towards each other	gravity
a network of horizontal and vertical lines that form squares	grid
crack in Earth's crust	fault
sudden rush of water over land after a heavy rain	flash flood
a very heavy flow or overflow of water over land	flood
land that is covered with water during a flood	floodplain
substances that make up or come from the Earth, such as water, rocks, and air	Earth materials
shaking of Earth caused by the movement of the crust	earthquake
height above sea level	elevation
movement of Earth materials by water, wind, ice, and other natural forces	erosion
a barrier that obstructs or does not allow, the flow of water	dam
a fan-shaped deposit of materials that is found at the mouth of a river or stream	delta
the process by which eroded materials settle in another place	deposition
third planet from the Sun; only known planet that contains life	Earth
center of the Earth	core
the atmosphere of the Sun that can only be seen during a solar eclipse	corona
outer layer of Earth that is made up of solid rock; also called the lithosphere	crust
any motion of an object, sequence or process that repeats itself	cycle
fan-shaped deposit of Earth materials on dry land	alluvial fan
an imaginary line that a planet, or object in space, spins on	axis
bottom of a mountain or other landform	base
a V-shaped valley eroded by a river or stream	canyon