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Earth & Plate Tecton

Earth and Plate Tectonics Unit

TermDefinition
inner planet planets closest to the sun, rocky Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars
terrestrial planet rocky planet, all of the inner planets
rotation Earth spinning on its axis one time in 24 hours
revolution Earth orbiting the sun one time in 365 1/4 days
lithosphere hard, rocky plates includes upper mantle and the crust
continental crust top, hard, rocky layer that includes the continents
oceanic crust top, hard rocky layer underneath the oceans more dense than the continental crust
convection currents circulation of material due to temperature and density (warm rises, cooler sinks)
inner core solid, rocky, most dense layer in the center of Earth made of iron and nickel
outer core liquid iron and nickel that circulates around the inner core
mantle the large middle layer of Earth where the convection currents occur, ranges from solid to liquid
asthenosphere slush-like middle mantle where the convection currents occur
Pangea supercontinent that occurred 280,000,000 years ago
Continental Drift Hypothesis by Alfred Wegener who said that the continents are in motion
Plate tectonics Theory that says the Earth is made up of plates that move
mid-ocean ridge an underwater mountain range built by seafloor spreading
Seafloor spreading process in which magma erupts between two plates and creates new oceanic crust pushing the old crust outwards, usually a mid-ocean ridge is formed
subduction when one plate sinks below another plate, causes volcanoes, made by converging plates
convergent two plates move towards each other
divergent two plates move away from each other, causes seafloor spreading
transform plates slide past one another
fault break in the lithosphere
earthquake rapid release of energy that occurs when stress builds up along a plate boundary or a fault
epicenter the spot on the Earth's surface directly above a focus
focus the spot on a fault line where energy is release in a seismic wave
seismic wave transfers energy through the ground during an earthquake
primary wave seismic wave that arrives first, a push pull motion
secondary wave seismic wave that arrives second, it moves at a right angle to the motion
seismometer tool used to measure seismic waves
volcano a vent where magma comes out of the Earth's crust
Continent to Continent converging plates cause mountains like the Himalayas
Ocean to Ocean converging plates cause ocean trench like the Mariana trench, and maybe an arch of volcanic islands
Ocean to Continent converging plates cause a subduction zone and mountain chain that includes volcanoes, like Mt St Helens and the Cascade Mountains
Oceanic Diverging plates cause mid ocean ridges and seafloor spreading, like the MidAtlantic Ridge
Continental diverging plates cause rift valleys on land such as the one in Iceland
Ring of Fire area around the Pacific Ocean where most of the volcanoes and earthquakes in the world occur
Hot spot when convection currents make magma plume up through the crust and create a volcano - NOT on a plate boundary
viscosity the thickness of the lava flow
mafic lava fast, hot, thin lava, quiet eruptions
felsic lava thick, slow lava, explosive eruptions
lava molten rock above ground
magma molten rock below ground
shield volcano gentle slope, mafic lava, quiet eruptions like Mauna Loa, Hawaii
cinder cone volcano steep cone shape, felsic lava (cinders), explosive eruptions
composite volcano stratovolcano, both felsic and mafic lava, alternating explosive and quiet eruptions, Mt. St. Helens
pyroclastic flow hot, fast moving cloud of ash and dust from a volcano
Volcanic ash very small pieces of rock and glass that flows from a volcano
Created by: jhenretta
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